Becoming Trunks
by flamingo6584
Summary: Trunks is 18 and it is the summer before he goes off to college. He has a lot of issues to overcome with his family, and he meets a woman who may change his plans. Rated R for lemons.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ Akira Toriyama does and this will hold true for the whole story.  
  
Chapter 1  
  
"You are such a heartless bastard!" shouted Trunks. He would never be able to live up to what his father thought he should be. He would never be the man his father expected him to be. He would never be like the boy from the future. "Don't you think that maybe the reason the boy from the future is so different from me was because he didn't have to grow up with you as a father?" There he had said it. All the years of torment he had endured from this man, and he swore he would never say those words out loud. But it was true. Vegeta was the reason he had become the person he was. Vegeta's constant berating of him had finally taken its toll on Trunks' battered self-esteem.  
  
Vegeta looked at his son. Although the harsh words had cut through him like a knife, he would not show his pain. Deep down the Saiyan prince knew this to be the truth, but he would never admit it to anyone. A fire rose in his black, stony eyes. If looks alone could kill, Trunks would be dead. Vegeta didn't say a word to his son. Hate was all his face could show. He walked away. This hurtful declaration had forever changed their relationship. From this point forward, things would never be the same between the two men.  
  
Trunks stood his ground. He wanted to chase after his father and beat the hell out of him, but he knew such and effort was useless. His father was much stronger and would most definitely not go easy on him. Suddenly his legs began to feel weak, as if they might give out right there and he would tumble to the ground. His stomach was in knots. He felt like he would vomit and pass out all at the same time. Trunks realized that he had hurt his father deeply. In the moment he shouted his heated accusations, he had wanted to hurt Vegeta. Now he wasn't so sure. He could never take those words back.  
  
Mom! I have to talk to mom, he thought. Mom was the only one who would understand. Mom was the only other person on the planet who had to endure the merciless disapproval of the prince of all Saiyans. He managed to get his head together enough to make the trip to his mother's office. At first he walked, then ran, and then flew into the air. Flying always helped to ease the nausea that his father's disapproving words caused him to feel. Trunks took the long way to his mother's office so that he could stay in the air just a little longer. The cool air against his flushed face felt good, making him want to linger and savor the breeze before he touched down.  
  
He reached Bulma's office and went in. Her office door was open and there was a woman sitting at his mother's desk rummaging through some of her papers and talking to someone on the speakerphone. "I can't find it, Bulma," the woman said with desperation in her voice.  
  
"It has to be there! It just has to!" came the unmistakable voice of Bulma over the speakerphone. "Look in the middle drawer of the file cabinet on the wall closest to my desk." She said. Trunks stood back while he watched the woman anxiously continue her search for whatever they were looking for. She was young. He had never seen her before. He wondered who she was.  
  
The woman went to the file cabinet that Bulma had suggested and opened it. She quickly rifled through some folders and after a few seconds, found what they had been looking for. "Here it is!" she said out loud.  
  
"Thank goodness." Said Bulma's voice. "That's a relief."  
  
The woman turned to face the phone. "I will be right over to the lab with the reports." She said.  
  
"Take your time. I'm just relieved you found them." Said Bulma.  
  
"Thanks. See you in a minute." The woman pushed a button on the phone and gathered up the documents. She was so immersed in what she was doing that she did not see Trunks enter the room. She came around the desk and caught sight of him standing there and screamed, nearly dropping her papers. "You scared the crap out of me! Who are you and what are you doing here?"  
  
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. I was looking for my mother." Said Trunks apologetically.  
  
The woman raised an eyebrow at him. She looked over to Bulma's desk and picked up a picture. She held it up to Trunks' face comparing the two. She then breathed a sigh of relief. "Okay, I guess you are allowed in here. Just don't sneak up on my like that!"  
  
"Again, I apologize," said Trunks with a small grin.  
  
"Apology accepted. My name is Miyuki. You must be Trunks. I have heard a lot about you." She held out her hand.  
  
Trunks did the same and they shook hands. "You've heard about me, huh? That can't be good." He said.  
  
"Why do you say that?" said Miyuki, a puzzled look on her face.  
  
Trunks felt tears welling up in his eyes. Watching Miyuki had made him forget his troubles, but when the question had been asked, it all came back like a tidal wave engulfing him. He turned away from her. "I need to find my mother. Can you tell me where she is?"  
  
"She's in the lab. Do you want me to take you to her?" Her voice was soft and calm, as if she could see the anguish on his face.  
  
Trunks saw a chair. He walked over to it and collapsed into it. He dropped his face into his hands and began to sob. He couldn't control it anymore. The tears just kept coming. Once he started, he couldn't stop.  
  
Miyuki walked over to where he was sitting and pulled up a chair so that she could sit in front of him. She wasn't sure what to do. Should I go get Bulma, she asked herself, or should I stay with him? She decided the latter was a better idea. When he got hold of himself she would go get Bulma.  
  
"Dammit, I'm sorry! I'm so embarrassed!" Said Trunks.  
  
"It's okay, really," she said to him. She reached over and grabbed some tissues from the desk and handed them to him.  
  
He looked up at her and took the tissues. He sat back in the chair and tried to compose himself. "You have no idea what it is like to be me," he said to Miyuki.  
  
"No, I don't," she agreed. "I do know what it is like to work for your mother, though. I have only met your father once and he scared me to death." She replied.  
  
Trunks managed a small laugh when he heard that statement. He imagined his father loved to intimidate most people. "Why haven't I ever seen you before?" he asked, trying to change the subject.  
  
"I'm always in the lab. Your mom sent me here to find some papers. She would have done it herself, but she was in the middle of a very technical experiment," replied Miyuki. "Which reminds me, I need to get these over to her quickly." She grabbed a piece of paper off Bulma's desk and scribbled on it. "Here is my cell phone number if you need to talk." She handed Trunks the paper. "I will tell your mom that you are here and need to talk to her." Miyuki winked at Trunks and walked away.  
  
Trunks got a really good look at her face right before she left. She was very pretty. She had dark brown hair and blue eyes like her mother. Her hair was curly and long. She had it pulled away from her face with a few curls dangling against her cheek. It went down her back almost to her waist. She had on a lab coat over her standard Capsule Corp. polo shirt and khaki's. She had olive skin, which was unlike the fair skin that seemed to run in the Brief's family. Trunks looked down at the number scribbled on the piece of paper. Perhaps I could call her, he thought.  
  
He sat there and his mind wandered from thoughts of the lovely woman he'd just met to his father, then to his mother, and finally to his sister, Bra. How he hated her. Since the day his sister was born, she was all his father wanted to talk about. His little Saiyan princess. The way his father fawned over her disgusted Trunks. She got away with all the things he was never able to get away with. She had Vegeta wrapped around her little finger. Trunks shook his head to get the thoughts out of his brain.  
  
After about ten minutes' time, a frantic Bulma showed up. "What's wrong honey?" she said as she ran into her office. She ran over to her son and wrapped her arms around him. How he loved to be in his mother's arms. He always felt safe there. She ran her hands over his hair. That soothing gesture always helped to calm him when he and his father had been fighting. "What did Vegeta say to you now?" she asked.  
  
"More of the same," he said. "He called me a 'pussy' and a 'momma's boy', et cetera. He really doesn't want me to go to college, Mom. He wants me to stay here and be his personal punching bag."  
  
Bulma held him closer and kissed his forehead. "I know." She whispered to her son. "Don't listen to him. He is proud of you no matter what he says."  
  
Trunks pulled away from her. "No, mom. He has never been proud of me." Trunks stood up and walked to the other side of the office. "I want to go to college. I don't want to spend the rest of my life training. I'm sick of training!"  
  
Bulma looked at her son. No matter how proud she was of him, it just wasn't enough. He wanted so much to be accepted by his father. Vegeta was such a heartless bastard sometimes. Bulma had seen the good side of her mate many times, but when it came to Trunks, he was ruthless. "He'll come around," she managed to say; though she knew when she said it, it wasn't enough.  
  
Trunks looked at his mother with disbelief. "Why do you always take his side?" he shouted at her.  
  
"Trunks, I am not taking sides. He is my husband and you are my son. You know I want you to go to college and eventually take over Capsule Corp. Honestly, I think he just doesn't want you to leave." She managed to say.  
  
"He doesn't want me to leave because then he can't control my every action." Said Trunks.  
  
"That isn't true," his mother protested.  
  
"It is true Mom!" Trunks could feel the tears coming again. How he hated to cry. Crying made him the weak boy his father told him he was. "This is pointless. You just don't understand." Trunks walked out of the office.  
  
Bulma ran after him. "Trunks wait!" she shouted. "Don't leave like this. You can't keep running away!"  
  
Trunks kept on walking, forcing himself not to look back. He got outside and leapt up into the air. Bulma was still chasing him when he rose into the sky.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Trunks flew aimlessly for hours trying to sort out the mixed-up emotions in his head. It didn't help. Eventually he would have to go home and face his parents and his bitch of a sister. He didn't want to go back, not just yet.  
  
He went into town and stopped at a small café. He sat down at a table and stared off into space. He put his hands in his pocket and there he found the paper, the one that the beautiful girl had given him, with her name and number written on it. She did say to call her if he wanted to talk. "What the hell," he muttered to himself. He took out his cell and punched the number.  
  
"Hello," said Miyuki's voice on the other end.  
  
He didn't know what to say at first. Nothing came out when he opened his mouth.  
  
"Is anyone there?" she asked in an annoyed tone.  
  
"Miyuki? Hi, it's Trunks." He managed to answer.  
  
"Oh, it's you. Where are you? Your mother is worried sick about you?" she said sounding concerned.  
  
"Are you with her?" he asked.  
  
"No, I'm at home. You should really call her and let her know you are all right."  
  
This was not what he had called her for. For a second, he contemplated hanging up the phone right then and there, but he didn't. "Look, I don't want to talk about my parents. I thought you said I could call you if I wanted to talk."  
  
"I'm sorry," she quickly apologized. "I just...forget it. Let's start over. Hi Trunks."  
  
"Hi," he repeated, smiling a little. "I am at the Satan City Café downtown. Would you like to meet me here?" He could hardly believe he had said it. He had always been afraid to ask women to meet him, but after what she witnessed in his mother's office that afternoon, he really wanted a chance to make a better impression on her.  
  
"Sure. My apartment is only a few blocks away from there. I'll be there in five."  
  
"I'm looking forward to it." He said. Again, he surprised himself. They hung up their phones.  
  
Fifteen minutes passed before she showed up and Trunks smiled at the sight of her. She looked even more ravishing than what he remembered. Her hair was down this time and flowed all about her shoulders as she strolled up to him smiling and waving. She walked over and sat down with him at the table.  
  
"Five minutes, huh?" he said, making a point to look at his watch and then at her.  
  
"Sorry. I had to change and make myself beautiful," she answered. No, you didn't, thought Trunks. "So, what's on your mind, Mr. Briefs?" she asked, a huge grin on her face.  
  
Trunks opened his eyes wide. "Please, call me Trunks." He said.  
  
"Okay, Trunks. What's on your mind?" she asked, gazing directly into his eyes.  
  
Trunks looked back at her. Those blue eyes were mesmerizing. "My life is shit. How about you?" he said with a smirk on his face.  
  
"You've got to be kidding me! You are the grandson of the founder of Capsule Corp. You are part of the royal family of West City. How in the world could your life be shit'?"  
  
"I don't want to talk about me. Let's talk about you," he said and smiled at her.  
  
She returned his smile. Just then the waiter showed up to take their order. Trunks looked at Miyuki, "They don't serve alcohol here do they?" he asked her.  
  
She shook her head.  
  
"I apologize," he said to the waiter. "We will be going somewhere else." Trunks got up from the table and motioned for her to follow him. Miyuki was beginning to feel very strange. He had an aura about him that was different from any other man she had ever met. He had seemed so shy and vulnerable in Bulma's office, but he seemed very different now. It was very enticing to her.  
  
They walked a few blocks making idle conversation until they came upon a tavern. They went in and sat in a booth. "How old are you?" he asked her.  
  
"I beg your pardon?" she said shocked.  
  
"I am only 18, not old enough to drink yet. Can you order for me?"  
  
"Oh, I see. So you want me to go to jail then for giving alcohol to a minor?" she said with a smile.  
  
"I am part of the royal family, remember? You won't go to jail."  
  
"No, but I will get fired from my job if my picture ends up all over the tabloids. I don't come from a wealthy family," she retorted.  
  
"And I am eighteen, not a minor," he said with a familiar smirk on his face.  
  
She stared at him for a minute before getting up from her chair and walking over to the bar. She came back with two drinks. "Here you go, kid."  
  
"What is it?" he asked.  
  
"A Salty Dog. Vodka and grapefruit juice with salt on the rim. My personal favorite," she said as they clinked their chilled glasses together.  
  
Trunks took a big gulp and burped. "Ahhhhhh."  
  
Miyuki raised eyebrow at him. "So, for the third time, what's on your mind?" she said. She wasn't going to let up on him till he told her why he was so upset earlier.  
  
"I told you, my life is shit," he began. "That is it in a nutshell. My dad is an asshole. My sister is a bitch. My mom is the only one who I care about and she has no idea how I feel. I am supposed to go to college in the fall, but my dad doesn't want me to. I want to go so I can get away from him and my sister. I am expected to take over Capsule Corp. without having any say in the matter. I have no choice about my future. So, in other words, my life is shit!"  
  
Miyuki sat back and listened to him. How she wished she had his problems! She would have traded places with him in a minute. "You have no idea how good you have it, kid. My life is shit, on top of which, my sitting here with you is a big mistake." 


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2  
  
As Trunks walked home, he went over their conversation again and again in his head. 'I'm such a jerk,' he thought. He found a bench and sat down. 'Thoughtless, arrogant-- wonder where I got that from.' he said to himself. Miyuki had said it was a mistake for them to be seen together. She was afraid of losing her job, and her job was all she had. Unlike him, she hadn't grown up with an unlimited supply of whatever she wanted. He had felt ashamed when she talked about her life and compared it to his. He couldn't help who his grandfather was and he would have given anything at that moment to be someone else. Sighing, he tried to piece together what he had done wrong in their conversation.  
  
"Why is it a mistake for us to be here?" asked Trunks.  
  
"Because you are my boss's son and it just wouldn't look right." Said Miyuki.  
  
"Then why did you agree to meet me?"  
  
Miyuki just smiled. Truthfully, she wasn't sure how to answer that question. He had intrigued her, and there was no denying that he was a hottie. "I guess I just wanted to be sure you were okay," she finally said.  
  
"That's the only reason?" questioned Trunks. He had hoped it had been more than just out of concern, but he must have been kidding himself. Someone like her was way out of his league.  
  
She smiled again and took a drink. "What exactly are you asking me, Trunks? I don't like to play games, so I'd appreciate it if you'd just get to the point. You called me and asked me to meet you. Why?"  
  
Trunks felt his face get flushed. If she really knew what he was thinking, it wouldn't be good.  
  
She spoke before he could get any words out. "Actually, you don't have to answer that. It's easy enough to know what all eighteen-year-old boys are thinking." She smiled again and ran her fingers through her hair. "You, Mr. Briefs, need to get home and stop worrying your mother!"  
  
"Wait," he started to confess, "I don't want to go home yet. You see, I don't want to face my father. The two of us had a huge argument this afternoon, which is why I was in my mom's office. Mom does her best to calm things down, but she always ends up taking his side. She just doesn't understand that I'm tired of trying to live up to what they think I should be. They continually pull me in two different directions, each wanting me to become something that they want. Sometimes, even I don't know what I want to be, but as long as they keep hounding me, I may never get the chance to find out."  
  
"You're lucky to have parents who care about you," was all she managed to say.  
  
"Sometimes I wish I wasn't so lucky," he replied, staring down at the table and into the glass that he was holding. He swirled the liquid around in the glass a few times before looking back up at her.  
  
Her blue eyes met his with a sharp look. "Let me tell you a little about life, kid. My mom left my dad when I was six years old, leaving me to be raised by my dad and grandmother. Granted, my dad tried the best he could, but he didn't have the skills to be a father. My grandmother was very old and also tried her best. She was the only good thing about my life, but she passed away when I was in my senior year of high school. My grandmother had also taken out a life insurance policy on herself, naming me as sole beneficiary, so that my dad couldn't touch it. Right after I graduated high school, I got a job at Capsule Corp. and moved into my own apartment. Then I used the insurance money to go to college. I haven't talked to or seen my dad for five years because he never forgave me for using that insurance money to pay for school." She stopped to take a quick sup of her drink before continuing. "I don't know who my mother was, and probably never will. Everything I own, I've had to struggle for. So, don't come to me and tell me that your life is 'shit', because you don't even have any idea what real shit is!" Her eyes were starting to well up with tears.  
  
"I'm so sorry. I'm such a jerk." He managed to say. Why did he always say the wrong thing around women? 'Why do I always stick my foot in my mouth so deep that I can never get it out?' he thought.  
  
She realized that her speech was not what Trunks needed to hear. "No, you're not a jerk. I understand what you're feeling. It's me that should be more sympathetic." Miyuki wanted to be compassionate, but it was hard when what she really wanted to do was shake some sense into him. "I think it would be best if we leave before someone recognizes you." She started to get up from her seat.  
  
"No, please. Don't go," said Trunks, a plea in his eyes. "I want to hear more about you."  
  
She sighed. "I really have to get home and get some sleep. I have a big day tomorrow. Would you like to walk me home?"  
  
"I would really like that," said Trunks with a smile. Maybe somehow he could redeem himself so that she would want to see him again.  
  
They got up from their booth, left the saloon, and walked in silence for a few blocks until Trunks decided he needed to say something. "There was no alcohol in that drink you got for me was there?" he commented with a smirk.  
  
Miyuki smiled. "No there wasn't. Could you really tell?"  
  
"Yes, I could tell. What about yours?"  
  
Miyuki pulled out a pack of cigarettes from her purse and lit one. "Not mine either. I don't drink. Smoking is my vice."  
  
Trunks watched her take a deep breath of the cigarette and slowly blow out the smoke. He was working himself into a frenzy of male hormones. He tried to shake off the feeling. "So, do you work really closely with my mom?" he asked, wanting to keep her talking.  
  
"Pretty close right now. She and I are working on a project together and I am really hoping she likes my work. I'm sucking up to her because there is a big promotion coming up at the end of the summer. The Director of Operations in North America is retiring and I'm hoping to land that position. So I'm doing my best to kiss ass." Miyuki wasn't sure why she had just told Trunks this information. Perhaps it was because she could sense that he wanted more from her than she wanted to give and knowing that she was leaving may discourage him from pursuing anything. "Don't you dare breathe a word of this to your mother or I will be forced to silence you!"  
  
Trunks felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. North America? That was on the other side of the world. "I see," he managed a smile. "Well, good luck, and I promise I won't tell," he said.  
  
They walked a little longer in silence until they came upon Miyuki's apartment. She put out her cigarette, got her keys out, and unlocked the door. "Thanks for walking me home. Maybe I will see you around the 'Compound'?"  
  
"I hope so." Trunks turned and walked away. After a few steps, he looked back. He wanted to be sure he remembered where the apartment was in case he wanted to stop by.  
  
"Who am I kidding?" He mumbled to himself as he was snapped back to reality. "Like she would ever have me over to her apartment. She thinks I'm nothing but a kid." Trunks ran his fingers through his hair as he thought about what he had to do 'I need to grow up. If I don't do something now, my parents will continue to dictate what I do and they will forever suffocate me.' He leaned back on the bench and stared up at the sky. "I need to do something. Something drastic!" He said aloud.  
  
Miyuki shut the door behind her and walked into her apartment. She dropped her purse in the spot on her table where it always sat. She was about to sit down when her doorbell rang. She went over and opened it. "Hi. Why are you so late?" It was her next-door neighbor, Sayuri. Miyuki motioned for her to come in, then went over to the refrigerator and got them each a soda. "Are you going to tell me why you're so late?"  
  
"I was out," answered Miyuki.  
  
"OUT? YOU? You've go to be kidding. You never go out—and why did you go out without me? It wasn't with a guy, was it?"  
  
"Time-out!" Sayuri was her best friend, but she didn't know when to shut up. "Yes, I was with a guy, but it was NOT a date." She said.  
  
"Who's the guy? Is he cute? Does he have a brother?"  
  
"He's my boss's son," said Miyuki.  
  
"You went out with Trunks Briefs? He is so hot! What is he like?"  
  
"Would you stop? You don't get it, do you? He's my boss's son and he's eighteen. We were not on a date because if we had been on a date I would probably get fired." Miyuki plopped down in a chair.  
  
Sayuri sat in the chair across from her and they both lit up cigarettes. "Eighteen is of legal age. You act like you have one foot in the grave. You are only twenty-three, you know. That's not that old. Besides, if that is 'old', then I must be downright ancient at twenty-five."  
  
Miyuki grabbed a magazine and threw it at her. Laughing, Sayuri managed to duck out of its way and it landed on the floor. "I don't need some kid complicating my life right now. On the other hand, he is a very good- looking kid...and those muscles! You have no idea how hard it was for me to keep my hands off!" She took another drag of her cigarette.  
  
Sayuri did the same and blew three smoke rings. "Honestly, girl! I just don't get you sometimes. You've had some of the most gorgeous and available men banging down your door, and you totally blow them off. It wouldn't hurt you to give in to your animal yearnings sometimes." She picked up the magazine that had landed on the floor and tossed it back on the table in the center of the room. "You don't even have a television for gosh sakes. What do you do besides work, exercise and sleep?"  
  
"I also read, and that is all I need to do. Why would I want to complicate my life with a man? We have this conversation everyday. Can we put it to rest?"  
  
"No, we can't! It isn't everyday that you have a date with the most eligible and hottest thing in the city!" Sayuri put out her cigarette in the ashtray and looked at her friend. "Are you going to blow this one off, too?"  
  
Right at that moment the doorbell rang again. Miyuki looked at her friend with a puzzled expression. "Who could that be?" she wondered. She went to the door and opened it.  
  
"Hi." It was Trunks. He had a bouquet of flowers that he had bought from a corner merchant. "I just wanted to give you these and tell you that I enjoyed getting to know you this evening. I really hope we can do it again soon." He said. His voice was wavering because he was very nervous.  
  
Her friend ran over to the door to introduce herself. "Hi, I'm Miyuki's next door neighbor, Sayuri. It's a pleasure to meet you." She stuck out her hand for a handshake.  
  
Trunks did the same and shook her hand. "A pleasure to meet you as well," he said. He thought he would throw up at any minute, but managed to keep his composure. "Miyuki, would you be free tomorrow evening for dinner?" He asked. Please say yes was running over and over in his head.  
  
Miyuki looked down at the flowers and then over to her friend. Sayuri gave her a look that said, "If you don't say yes I will kill you." She looked back at Trunks and without even thinking answered "Yes, I would love to."  
  
Trunks was relieved. He wanted to jump up and down, but kept himself on the ground until he said good-bye. As soon as she shut the door, he was up in the air flying over West City. "Yes!" he shouted.  
  
Miyuki shut the door and hugged the flowers. She looked at her friend, who had a big smile on her face. "Did I just make a date with my boss's eighteen-year-old son?"  
  
Sayuri nodded several times before running over to her friend and hugging her. "You go girl!" she giggled. "He was the cutest thing I have seen in a long time. He looks much older than eighteen." She pulled her friend over to the kitchen and got the biggest glass she could find in the cupboard. She filled it with water and took the flowers from Miyuki and placed them in the glass. "There you go. Now you better water these. I know all about your 'brown thumb'."  
  
Miyuki hadn't heard a single word her friend had said. She was still in a complete daze over what had just happened. "He brought me flowers," was all she said  
  
Sayuri was beaming. She was so glad that her pal was going on a date. Miyuki needed a good dose of fun in the worst way.  
  
Trunks flew home in a daze, also. But, the closer he got to Capsule Corporation, the slower his pace became. He knew that he had to face his parents, especially his father when he got home.  
  
Trunks arrived home and flew directly towards the balcony of his room. In that way he figured he wouldn't have to face his father or sister and he didn't want either of them to ruin this extraordinary bliss he was feeling at that moment. Now, he had to plan the perfect date. Maybe he should call Goten. His best friend had a lot more experience with women and always seemed to have at least one or two girls hanging all over him. He would definitely call Goten first thing in the morning.  
  
Suddenly, there was a knock at his door. He looked at it, debating on whether or not to open it. "Who is it?" he asked. Depending on who answered would dictate whether he would answer it.  
  
"It's me honey. I want to talk to you." It was Bulma. He had already decided that she was the only one he would open the door for. As soon as he unlocked the door and let his mom enter his room, she hugged him. He hugged her back but felt uncomfortable. He was so excited on the inside but could not share with her what he was excited about. "Are you okay?" she said as she was hugging him. "I was so worried about you! I didn't know where you were!"  
  
"I'm fine, Mom. I do need to ask you something. If I want a job here at Capsule Corp. for the summer, where do I need to go?" This is what he had decided would be his first "drastic" step.  
  
Bulma pulled back and looked at her son, puzzled by this question. "If you want a job honey, I can put you to work in my office."  
  
He shook his head. "No Mom. I want an entry-level job, just like everyone else that applies here. I don't want any special treatment." He replied to his mother.  
  
"Okay." Said Bulma. She was completely stunned by what her son was asking her. He had never before expressed an interest in working at the family business. "You can go by Human Resources and fill out an employment application. When do you want to start?"  
  
"As soon as I can. I will load boxes if that's all that's available. I really mean it Mom. I don't want any special favors."  
  
"All right, son. If that's what you want." She was silent for a moment and then looked at him. "Trunks, you should really talk to your father. He was very hurt by what you said to him. He probably deserved it, but I've never seen him like this."  
  
Trunks shook his head. "I have nothing to say to him. He constantly compares me to that other Trunks from the future and I am sick of it! I am not that person. I am who I am and he is just going to have to accept that."  
  
Breathing a heavy sigh, Bulma put her hand on her sons back and rubbed in a circle. She loved both of her men so much and hated to see them fight like this. But, she also knew in her heart that she had to let the two of them work it out. There was nothing she could do. She gave her son a kiss on the cheek and left the room.  
  
Trunks watched his mom leave. He would not talk to his father; not now that things were starting to look up for him. Right at that moment, the girl was all that he could think about—that beautiful, amazing girl—Miyuki. 


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3  
  
Trunks spent most of the night tossing and turning, thinking about Miyuki. He wanted their first date to be perfect. He went over and over what they would do and what he would say. He had a hard time falling asleep. Exhaustion finally overtook him well into the early morning hours of the next day. He had set his alarm for 7:00 so that he could get to the office his mom had told him about and apply for a job, but shut his alarm off when it rang and went back to sleep. He woke up at 8:30. "Crap!" he cursed, and bolted out of bed. He took a whirlwind shower and put on some casual clothes for his interview. He didn't want to get too dressed up, but he didn't want to go in looking like a slob either.  
  
As soon as she arrived at her office, Bulma called Human Resources as soon as she got to her office to notify them that her son would be in to apply for a job and that they had better have one ready for him when he got there. She also informed them that he wanted no special treatment when he got there and that he wanted an entry-level job. She suggested that something on the loading dock would be perfect since loading boxes is what he had mentioned the night before. They obliged, of course, and although they didn't have any current openings on the dock, they set one up just for him. "But, she distinctly said no special treatment. I heard her," said the secretary to her supervisor.  
  
"I know she said not special treatment, but she also said she wanted him on the dock. Do you want to tell the president of the company that her son can't work where she wants him to because there are no openings?" replied the supervisor.  
  
"Good point," she supposed, and went on to create a position for Trunks.  
  
When Trunks arrived, they had him fill out an application just like any other person who walked in off the street. Afterwards, they did a quick interview, told him he was hired and that he could start the next day and where to report. Not everyone got a position that quickly at Capsule Corp., but HR knew better.  
  
With that out of the way, Trunks walked back to the house. He hadn't seen his father since their argument and he liked it that way. He expected Vegeta to have some snide remark about him working like a common laborer instead of training. Once home, he went into the kitchen. To his delight, both his sister and father were nowhere to be found.  
  
Trunks got out his cell phone and dialed Goten's number. "Goten, it's Trunks. I have something very important to talk to you about."  
  
Goten was still in bed when he called and only half-acknowledged what he said. "Yeah what's so darned important?" he asked with a yawn.  
  
"I have a date tonight."  
  
Goten immediately woke up and dropped the phone. When he regained his composure he picked the phone back up. "I'm sorry. I must be dreaming. I thought you just told me you had a date tonight."  
  
"Quit being an asshole. Yes, I have a date tonight," Trunks said with irritation in his voice.  
  
"All right! I didn't know you could get a date without my help."  
  
"Very funny. Now I need your advice." Said Trunks.  
  
"What do you need my advice for?" questioned Goten.  
  
"I want this date to be perfect, so help me figure out where and what to do," said Trunks, a hint of desperation in his voice.  
  
"Ah, I see. You need the help of the master to get on the good side of your woman. Well, my friend, you have come to the right person. First off, what does she look like?"  
  
"Does it really matter what she looks like when planning our date?"  
  
"No," said Goten, "I just want to know what she looks like. Is she a dog or what?"  
  
"No, she is the most beautiful woman I have ever met in my life," said Trunks. He leaned back in the kitchen chair he was sitting in and envisioned her face on the ceiling. "She is an angel."  
  
Goten scrunched up his face in disgust. "Dude, they are always angels till you get to know them. Then they change. They are sweet and innocent until they trap you in their web of feminine wiles, and then they change into she- devils."  
  
"Sorry about your luck, but I am telling you she is not like that," asserted Trunks to his friend.  
  
"Oh, and what makes this girl so different?"  
  
"She's older. She told me she doesn't like to play games," said Trunks.  
  
Goten was silent for a moment taking this information in. "How in the world did you meet this woman, and, more importantly, does she have a friend?"  
  
"She works for my mom, and yes she does have a friend. I met her friend last night at her apartment. She's her next-door neighbor."  
  
"Dude, you were at her apartment? Then, why in the hell are you asking for my advice?"  
  
"Goten, it wasn't what you are thinking. I was walking her home. Can we get back to planning my date please?" begged Trunks  
  
"Okay. Let's see. She's older. How much older?"  
  
"I'm not sure, but she is old enough to buy alcohol," replied Trunks.  
  
"So, she is over 21. She definitely would not like the places you and I hang out. You need to take her to a really fancy restaurant. Oh, and be sure to open the door for her, pull her chair out from the table, let her sit before you, and always take her coat for her," said Goten. "Are you getting all this?"  
  
"Oh, man, I better write this down," said Trunks. "Hold on while I get a pen." Trunks searched for a pen and some paper and wrote down everything his friend said. "Is that it? What about after dinner?"  
  
"There is no 'after dinner'. I suggest that you take her to a place with really slow service. Oh, and be sure to ask her a lot about herself and listen intently to everything she says, even if you are bored out of your mind," said Goten.  
  
"Did you just break up with someone, because you aren't usually this cynical."  
  
"As a matter of fact, I did," said Goten. "So, have a great time while I stay home all ALONE."  
  
"Oh, right! Like you've never done the exact same thing to me."  
  
Trunks heard a commotion at the other end of the line and the unmistakable voice of Chi Chi yelling, "Goten, get your butt out of that bed! You have chores to do!" she screeched.  
  
"Gotta go, guy! Talk to you later and I want to hear EVERYTHING!" Goten hung up before Trunks could even say good-bye. He could hear Chi Chi still yelling even as he hung up.  
  
'I have to find a fancy restaurant.' He remembered one in town that his mom always insisted they go to on special occasions. He looked up the number and made a reservation for 6 o'clock. Okay, that's done, he thought. Now, what to wear? He quietly went to his room, hoping no one else it the house heard him. To his surprise and annoyance his sister was waiting for him when he opened the door. "What the hell are you doing in my room piglet?" he yelled at his sister.  
  
"Aww, I'm telling Daddy that you called me that," said Bra.  
  
"Who gives a damn about Dad?" replied Trunks and started chasing after her to throw her out of his room.  
  
Bra shrieked when he came at her. "Stop it! I just wanted to see what you were doing!"  
  
"Well, now you've seen. Now get out!" He pointed toward the door.  
  
"Sounds like somebody got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning," she teased  
  
Trunks rolled his eyes and decided to ignore her. He walked toward his closet and stood looking at his clothes. I want to look good, but not too dressed up, he thought.  
  
Bra walked over to the closet and stood next to him. "So, what are you doing?" she asked.  
  
"Well, I am looking at the clothes in my closet, if you must know. Is that a crime or something?" he was losing his patience quickly with his sister. Simply hearing her voice would set him off these days.  
  
Bra giggled. No matter how mean he was to her, she adored her brother. "I like this shirt." She said pointing to an off white buttoned-down shirt.  
  
"You do, do ya?" he said and pulled it out of his closet. "What about pants?" he said.  
  
"Um, these," she said, reaching for a pair of khaki cargo pants and handing them to her brother. "What do you think?"  
  
He held the two pieces together. He was impressed that his little sister picked out such a decent outfit for him. "Okay, what shoes then?" he asked.  
  
She looked back in his closet and pulled out his white sneakers. "These." She said.  
  
Trunks thought for a minute. "I can't wear those to the place I am going. I need something nicer."  
  
Bra turned back towards the closet and found a pair of brown dress shoes. "Are these fancy enough?" she said sarcastically.  
  
"They are fine," he nodded. "Now get the hell out of my room." His mood turned very quickly and he chased her till she ran out of his room screaming. He figured she would go running to Vegeta, telling some lie about how mean he had been to her, but he didn't care. Nothing was going to ruin his mood or his evening. He looked at the clock. It was 1:00. I wonder if I should call her now, he thought. He couldn't wait to hear Miyuki's voice again. He sat down on his bed and pulled out his cell. He had already programmed her number in his phone. He pressed the number that corresponded to hers and placed the phone up to his ear. Please answer, he said to himself over and over.  
  
"Hello," said the voice from the other end.  
  
Trunks tried to imagine her mood from the tone of her voice. Was she busy? Did she want to talk? "Um, hi." He finally managed to say to her.  
  
"Hi there!" Miyuki was glad to hear from him. She had been having trouble concentrating on her work all day because she had been anticipating his call and didn't want to miss it. "Hold on a sec." She placed her hand over the receiver and he heard muffled conversation. She got back on a few seconds later. "Sorry about that, I wanted some privacy."  
  
"No problem, I understand. I don't get much privacy myself. We're still on for tonight, right?" he asked with anticipation.  
  
"Of course! What time?" She couldn't wipe the silly smile off her face. She was actually excited about going out with him. She was almost giddy!  
  
"I made us reservations for 6:00. Can I pick you up at 5:30?"  
  
"Sounds great. I can't wait." She said.  
  
"I'll see you tonight then." They both said good-bye and hung up their phones. She can't wait! She actually said she couldn't wait! "Yes!" he said out loud and spun around. In the doorway was his father. He had a venomous look on his face, but that was nothing new.  
  
"Who were you talking to?" asked Vegeta, low and overconfident as he always came across.  
  
"None of you damn business. Can't I have some peace in my own room?" shouted Trunks. "Did Bra tell you I was picking on her? Did she also happen to tell you she was in my room snooping when I wasn't in here?"  
  
"Yes, she said you were picking on her. I tend not to believe her tirades most of the time when she tells me such things, contrary to what you may think." He leaned against the frame of the door and crossed his arms. "Your mother thinks I should speak to you."  
  
Trunks stood his ground and crossed his arms in a similar fashion. "About what?" he said with sarcasm.  
  
"I thought about what you said yesterday."  
  
"Yeah?" A confrontation with Vegeta was not what he wanted to have at that moment.  
  
Vegeta went silent. He was searching for the right words to say. He finally managed to put together what he wanted to articulate, "Boy, what do you want from me? I have no skills for this father business. I am a Saiyan warrior with no one to fight. Most of the time on this world I feel lost and alone. My only peace is found in training. Can you blame me if I want to train with you, my only son?"  
  
For Trunks, it almost sounded like an apology, but he knew Vegeta wasn't capable of such a thing. Trunks sat down on his bed, not sure how to respond. He was still angry with him, but he could see his Father was trying to make peace. "The only thing I want from you, Father, is to be accepted for who I am, and not for who you think I should be." Trunks held his breath for a moment, expecting his father to go off the deep end like he always did when they were "talking."  
  
Vegeta took in the words of his son and pondered them. He did not know what else to say. He prided himself on always being the strongest and most powerful, but he could never control this boy and now, more than ever, he had to accept that fact. He looked up at Trunks with softness in his eyes that was not there before. "So you're going to work for your mother?" he finally ventured.  
  
"Yes. I start tomorrow."  
  
"Will you be training with me at all anymore?" he asked.  
  
"I'm not sure," answered Trunks. He didn't even want to think about it. "I'll have to see what my work schedule will be"  
  
"Fine then." Vegeta was done talking. He had the answer to the question that had been bothering him. He walked away.  
  
Trunks let his breath out. He wasn't sure how long he had been holding it. He could have sworn he had seen disappointment cross his father's face, but Trunks was grateful that his father had taken the time to talk to him. After all, Vegeta had never been known to be a man of many words.  
  
Time had never crawled as much as it did from the afternoon until it was time for Trunks to leave to pick up his date. When his mom got home, she came up to his room and found him getting ready. "Well, don't you look handsome! Where are you going?"  
  
Trunks rolled his eyes. Why was everyone so interested in what he was doing? "I'm going out with some friends." He managed to say.  
  
"Oh, well, I hope she enjoys herself," said his mom with a knowing wink. "Do you want to take my car?"  
  
"Sure, Mom, that would be awesome."  
  
"No problem." She handed him her capsule and straightened his collar. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and left him alone in his room.  
  
He looked at himself one last time in the mirror. "This is it. Don't screw it up," he said to his reflection. 


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4  
  
That evening, Bulma was serving up dinner. Bra was eagerly awaiting her meal at the table. Vegeta walked in to see the two of them getting ready to eat. Bulma smiled when he came in. Her husband was such a creature of habit that she could set her watch by him. He always came down to the kitchen promptly at 6:00, eager and ready to have a meal. "Where is the boy?" he asked.  
  
"He's going out with friends, or so he says. Personally, I think he has a date because he looked really handsome before he left. I let him use my car. I didn't figure his date wanted to ride on the back of his cycle," said Bulma, pleased as could be that her son was getting out of the house. He hadn't gone out much since his graduation.  
  
"Mommy, I helped him pick out his outfit," said Bra, pleased with herself.  
  
"You did honey? Well, that was so nice of you." Said Bulma.  
  
"Then he told me to get the hell out of his room," Bra added with a giggle.  
  
Vegeta gave his daughter a look of disapproval. "Watch your language, missy!"  
  
Bra stuck her lip out and formed a pout that was notorious for softening her father's demeanor toward her. "Well, he did!"  
  
"Bra, you know that you are not supposed to say those kinds of words, so please don't say them. Your brother values his privacy, so don't go into his room without permission," said Bulma to her daughter. "Did you talk to Trunks today?" she asked, looking at Vegeta.  
  
"Yes, woman, I talked to him," he said in between bites of his dinner.  
  
"And, what did you say to him?" she responded, trying to pry more information from him.  
  
Vegeta looked at Bulma with an expression of exasperation. He didn't want to talk about it anymore, and he was tired of her questions. "I...he...we...didn't say very much. He wants nothing to do with me, and he has made that clear."  
  
"Well, what did he say that—?"  
  
"That is enough talking!" he said with disdain. "Can I eat in peace, please?"  
  
"Fine, then! I was just trying to help!" Said Bulma, now equally annoyed.  
  
"I don't need your help on this matter. The boy hates me, and that is all there is to it."  
  
"All teenage boys hate their fathers. It's a fact of life. He's just going through a phase right now where he's becoming a man and is figuring out his own path in life." Her words made no difference to Vegeta. Once he had made up his mind about something, there was no way to change it.  
  
They spent the rest of the meal in silence, aside from the occasional singing and silly remarks from Bra. When Bulma was done eating, she left the room in a huff, leaving Vegeta to sit at the table and stare off into space. Bra took her plate over to the sink and walked to where her dad was sitting. She touched his arm and looked up at him with a smile. "I love you daddy," she said to him. His face softened and he pulled his daughter into his lap. She gave him a big hug. He breathed a sigh of relief that at least one of his children didn't hate him.  
  
Trunks flew to Miyuki's apartment and arrived five minutes early. He had enough time to use his unleash his Mom's car from it's capsule. He then went to her door and when he got there he took a deep breath and then rang the bell. He heard her say that she would be right there and a few minutes later she opened the door. The vision he saw was magnificent. Her hair was down and the ringlets of curls fell down from everywhere. She had a simple yellow dress on and black sandals. He decided that yellow was an attractive color on her. "Hello." she said when she opened the door. "Come on in. I am almost ready."  
  
Trunks walked into her apartment and stood by the door, looking around. Her apartment was small, not too much furniture. He watched her walk into another room, which he assumed was her bedroom. There was a couch and two chairs with a coffee table in the center, in the main room. Off to the side was a small table with two chairs. There were stacks of papers covering the table, along with her laptop personal computer, which was attached to several other things including a printer, scanner, and digital camera. It didn't look as if she spent much time eating on her table. Her kitchen had the bare necessities and was very tiny. That was all she had. This was very different from what he was used to. She walked back into the room with a sweater on. "Okay, I'm ready Mr. Briefs," she said to Trunks.  
  
Trunks smiled. He held out his hand for her to follow him to the car. She took it and they went out the door. When they got to the car he made sure he opened the door for her and closed it when she got in. As he drove, they made small talk on the way to the restaurant and when they arrived, Trunks again made sure that he opened the door for her. "This is a really fancy restaurant Trunks. Am I dressed okay?" said Miyuki.  
  
"You look fantastic. Haven't you ever been here before?"  
  
"No, I haven't," said Miyuki, a little embarrassed.  
  
"Oh, well, my mom brings us here all the time so they know us. You could wear a T-shirt and shorts and they would let us in.," he blurted. After he said it, he wondered if it was the right thing to say to her. 'Man,' he thought, 'am I going to have to second guess everything I say tonight?'  
  
"Well, let's just hope no one recognizes you and takes our picture and puts it in tomorrow's paper," she said.  
  
At that point they had made it into the restaurant. The host recognized Trunks right away. "Oh, Mr. Briefs! We have the best table waiting for you and your lovely lady friend."  
  
"Do me a favor." Trunks said to the host while slipping him some cash. "We would like to be discrete so if the paparazzi or anyone else for that matter shows up, please keep them away from us. No one is to bother us!"  
  
"Oh! You have my word, Mr. Briefs! No one will bother you!" He said with reassurance.  
  
Miyuki witnessed this transaction and was taken aback. This was going to be a very interesting evening, she thought to herself.  
  
They were escorted to their table, which was the best one in the place. The host pulled her chair out for her before Trunks could. He supposed that was acceptable, but he would have to check with Goten on that one. They both opened their menus and began scanning the contents. Miyuki was uncertain what she should order. Everything looked so good. "What's good here?" she asked.  
  
Trunks went on to describe several dishes that he had tried and enjoyed. This didn't help her nail down a choice. The waiter came to the table to take their drink order. "Just water for me," said Miyuki.  
  
"Same here," said Trunks.  
  
The waiter went on to explain several specials that were available that evening. Unfortunately, this too, did not help Miyuki make up her mind about what she wanted. "Why don't you pick something for me?" she asked Trunks. Lately, the big decisions about life seemed easy, but the smaller ones, like ordering dinner, seemed to be getting more and more difficult for her.  
  
Trunks felt a mixture of confusion and magnitude at the request to pick out her dinner. What if I choose something and she doesn't like it? Will she ever want to see me again? He decided to ask her more questions about what type of food she liked. He narrowed down the choices and decided on one of the specials. The waiter came back with their drinks and took their meal orders. After he took their menus, they couldn't hide behind them and they were forced to face each other. Trunks thought back to what Goten had said about women wanting to talk about themselves and what questions he had thought to ask her when they got here. Now, his mind was a complete blank. All the planning he'd made in his mind was to no avail. As he sat with her, all he could think about was how lucky he was to be there.  
  
Miyuki smiled at him. "So, what are you going to do this summer?" she asked him, breaking the awkward silence.  
  
"Well, I am starting a new job tomorrow on the loading dock at Capsule Corp.," said Trunks.  
  
"Oh, good for you." She said. "What will you be doing?"  
  
"I'm not sure. Loading I guess," he said with a smirk. What am I doing? he thought. I should be asking her the questions. "What about you?" he managed to say.  
  
"Work, work, and more work," she said. "Oh! And exercise. Did you know I teach the aerobics classes two days a week at Capsule Corp.? That's how I got to know your mom."  
  
"I didn't know that. Maybe I will stop by and check it out." Said Trunks.  
  
"Not too many of the guys do aerobics. In fact, I don't think any of them do."  
  
Trunks smiled. "So, tell me more about how you got your job at Capsule Corp.," he said, hoping this would get her talking.  
  
"Like I told you before, I got a job the summer after I graduated. It was in the sales department, taking orders over the phone for overseas businesses. When the fall came, I started college. I had my own apartment by then, so I needed to continue working. At that point, I started going to aerobics. I had no idea who your mom was when I first met her. I think she liked the fact that I treated her like anybody else, and that's how we got to know each other. It was sort of comical when I finally realized who she was. Is this boring you?"  
  
"Not at all," said Trunks. It really wasn't. He wanted to know everything about her.  
  
"Okay. Well, my sales team won an award for the most profits made and there was this big dinner and presentation, blah, blah, blah. Anyway, your mom was there, and she saw me. We hardly recognized each other because we were so used to seeing each other in sweaty workout clothes. She came up to me and said her secretary was quitting and asked me if I wanted the job. Of course, I said yes! Who wouldn't want to be secretary for the president of the company?" She stopped and looked at him, making sure he was still listening. Her experience with men had been that you couldn't keep their attention very long. Trunks seemed to be genuinely interested in what she was saying so she continued. "Your mom was great! She gave me a flexible schedule so that I could finish school on time and, when I graduated, she made me her personal assistant in the lab. I pretty much oversee the whole capsule creation process. I love it!"  
  
"I can't believe we've never met before, with you working there for five years," remarked Trunks.  
  
"Actually we have. You just don't remember because you were more interested in your video game than talking to me," said Miyuki. She giggled a little at the memory of meeting the fifteen-year-old Trunks, a much different boy than the one she was sitting at the table with.  
  
"I was?" Again, he was embarrassed. How could he have not noticed her before now? "I was an idiot back then. Not that I'm any smarter now, just different priorities."  
  
They both laughed. They continued to exchange stories of their lives. Trunks talked a lot about his father. At one time in his life he adored his father and thought he could do no wrong. But, as he got older, he and Vegeta had butted heads more and more. He wasn't sure how much she knew about the androids. Since he had been a baby at the time, Miyuki had to have been about five or so. Without divulging too much information about his lineage, he told her about his father's endless ego.  
  
When Trunks finished speaking, Miyuki leaned forward and said, "Your father is doing the best he can with what he knows. He sounds like the kind of man who must feel like he has to be in control of his environment. When you were younger and smaller, it was easy for him to control you. Now, you want to control your own life and he doesn't like it." Said Miyuki.  
  
"Yeah, that's it exactly. So what do I do?" he asked her.  
  
"Well, don't do what I did and cut your father out of your life. That doesn't work. I don't even know if my father is alive or not," she said, regret in her voice.  
  
"I'm sorry," said Trunks.  
  
"Don't be. I've worked through a lot of it. I have friends now and your mom sort of took me under her wing. I guess that's why I was so mad at you yesterday. I would give anything to have your mom as my mom. She's the best." Said Miyuki.  
  
Trunks grinned. "Yeah, she is pretty special," he agreed. "You wouldn't want my dad, though."  
  
"I don't know about that. Your dad takes an interest in you. My dad could have cared less whether I lived or died. The only time he got upset was when I took my grandmother's money and spent it on myself. My parents were way too selfish and never should have had a child. At least, I had my grandmother for a brief time."  
  
They continued to talk about their parents until their food came. Even while eating they continued their conversation. Miyuki was really enjoying herself. She didn't feel like she had to act a certain way around Trunks because, in reality, she didn't care if he liked her or not. She was completely open and honest with him, and it felt good to be that way. So much of her past relationships had been filled with mistrust and deceit. She figured since she didn't plan on seeing him again, that it didn't matter what he knew or thought about her.  
  
When they were done eating, Miyuki really wanted a cigarette. She hadn't had one since they left her apartment, and hadn't really thought about it till that moment. She looked around and saw that no one else was smoking. "Is it okay to smoke here?" she asked.  
  
Trunks had forgotten all about that and hadn't requested a table in the smoking section. "I think this is non-smoking. My mom always requests non- smoking so they must have figured that I wanted the same. I'm sorry, again. I'll remember that next time." He said.  
  
"Next time?" said Miyuki. "Aren't you being rather presumptuous?" She winked at him.  
  
Trunks was embarrassed and panicking on the inside. "Sorry, I guess I was hoping you would want to go out with me again."  
  
"Let's worry about that later," she said. She was enjoying herself, but she didn't want any attachments right now. She had plans already that didn't include anyone but herself. "I will be over by the bar for a minute. Be right back." She said.  
  
Trunks watched as she walked away. Her hips swayed and her long hair brushed back and forth across her back. He had an urge to bury his mouth in the nape of her neck, surrounded by all that beautiful curly brown hair. He took a deep breath, and slowly blew it out again. While she was gone the waiter brought the check and Trunks paid for their meals. When she had not returned, he decided to go and look for her. He walked to the bar and found her sitting on a stool. She was stubbing out her cigarette when he walked up next to her. She saw him and smiled. "Are we bolting?" she said.  
  
"No. Luckily for you, I paid the check." They both laughed. He took her arm and helped her off the barstool. They had briefly brushed up against each other several times during the evening, but this was the closest they had been to each other. Trunks caught the scent of her hair. It was intoxicating. Miyuki felt her heart flutter, being so close to him. He was much taller than she, even with her heels on. She reached up and pushed away the stray lock of lavender hair that never managed to stay out of his face. Trunks thought he would collapse when she touched him. He took her hand in his and kissed it closing his eyes and enjoying the feel of her skin against his lips.  
  
When Trunks opened his eyes, they both remembered they were in a public place. Miyuki bit her bottom lip, trying to quell the feelings that the summoned. Trunks stepped away from her, but kept hold of her hand, as he led her out the door.  
  
They did not notice that several onlookers in the restaurant were very interested in what the lavender-haired heir to the Capsule Corp. fortune was up to. Even though the host had confiscated every camera that was brought into the place, there were still prying eyes that wanted the story and would stop at nothing to get it.  
  
As they walked back to the car, Trunks put his arm around her. She didn't seem to mind. He opened the door to the car for her and helped her in. Then, he got in on his side. Before starting the car, he looked at her. "Home?" he asked.  
  
Miyuki wasn't sure she wanted to end the evening. Perhaps I could invite him in she thought. "Unless you have a better idea. We do both have to work tomorrow."  
  
"Oh, yeah, I gotta work tomorrow," he groaned. He wasn't used to getting sleep unless he was exhausted. Even during his last year of school he had gotten by on only a couple hours sleep. He must have gotten that trait from his father, because Vegeta hardly ever slept.  
  
Trunks started the car and began driving home. Miyuki played with his hair while he was driving. It felt unbelievable to him. When they got back to her apartment, he put the car in park, not sure if they should say good- bye. "You can walk me to my door," said Miyuki. Trunks immediately got out of the car and got to her side before she had it all the way open. If nothing else, he was going to do that right.  
  
Miyuki fumbled around in her purse for her keys until she found them. She unlocked her door and pushed it open just a crack. She turned and faced Trunks. She was standing on the doorframe and was much closer to his height this way. "Thank you for a wonderful evening." She said. Again, she brushed back that lock of hair from his face. He reached up to her face and pushed her hair back as well, his hand lingering on her cheek. He brought her closer to him, and she did not pull away.  
  
Their lips pressed against each other in a passionate kiss. The two of them then wrapped their arms around each other. Her body pressed against his stirred deep sensations in Trunks. With their lips still pressed together, Miyuki grabbed Trunks by the collar and pulled him into her apartment. He shut the door with his foot and leaned against it. He flipped her around and slowly lifted her to meet his lips while she was pressed against the door. Her hands explored his back outlining the muscles, which she could feel through the soft fabric of his shirt. He pulled his lips away from hers and buried his lips in the nape of her neck, as he had so desperately wanted to do at the restaurant. She moaned with pleasure at the intensity of the feelings his lips were bringing to her. She could hardly catch her breath.  
  
All at once, the phone rang. Trunks pulled away, as if the sound had shocked him back to reality. He set her down lightly. They continued to look at each other while the phone kept ringing. "I know who it is. She always calls when she hears my door close. I don't have to answer it." By that time it has stopped ringing. Miyuki figured her voicemail had picked it up. They continued to stare at each other, each trying to catch their breath. Miyuki bit her lower lip, again trying to quell her passion. "Let's not rush into anything," she managed to verbalize.  
  
Trunks took a step back and nodded. "You're right." He didn't want to rush into anything either. "I guess I had better go before something happens." In a way Trunks was hoping she would ask him to stay so that they could continue what they had started, but he knew in his head, that it wasn't a good idea.  
  
Miyuki opened the door. "Will you call me?" she said.  
  
Trunks started to walk out the door and looked back at her. "You better believe I will," he responded. "When can I call? Tomorrow? When I get home? Or when you shut the door, maybe?"  
  
"Goodnight, Trunks," she replied, smiling as she pushed him out the door with one finger on his chest. "Call me tomorrow and let me know how your job goes."  
  
"I will do that." He said. Miyuki shut the door. Trunks walked back to the car. He had never felt such mixed-up feelings of regret, exhilaration, and passion all at once. Regret because he didn't want her to think that sex was all he wanted; exhilaration and passion because when they kissed it was like a tidal wave of feelings that he had never felt before. He had kissed girls before. He had even made out with girls before, but it had never felt like that.  
  
After Miyuki shut the door, she walked over to the phone to get her message. It was Sayuri, just as she thought. She called her friend and related everything that happened on the date. "I can't let this complicate my life. I'm just going to take it just as it happens and not expect anything else from it," she said to her friend.  
  
Sayuri was very skeptical. "Just who are you trying to convince? Me? Or yourself?" 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5  
  
For the second night in a row, Trunks hardly got any sleep. He couldn't shut his mind off long enough to fall asleep. He was thinking about his new job and not wanting to get up late. And especially about the kiss he'd shared with Miyuki.  
  
His alarm went off. Groaning, he managed to drag himself out of bed and into the shower. Once he finished drying off, he dressed in his Capsule Corp. polo, which had been given to him for his first day of work, and a pair of shorts. Human Resources advised him not to wear nice clothes because he would be working hard and those would get ruined.  
  
He went downstairs to the kitchen to find Bulma making breakfast. Vegeta was sitting at the table reading the latest news and Bra was eating sugarcoated cereal and singing some nonsensical song. "Hi honey," said Bulma.  
  
"Coffee!" was all that came out of his mouth. Bulma smiled at her son and poured him a fresh cup.  
  
"I don't know how you can stand to drink that garbage," observed Vegeta making a face.  
  
Trunks didn't acknowledge that he heard his father's comment. Instead he plopped down in a chair, placed his cup down on the table, and began to stretch the morning's kinks out of his back. Bulma dished both her men up a generous portion of the breakfast she had prepared. For the most part, everyone sat at the table in silence, each lost in their own little world. Bulma was obsessing over all the things she needed to accomplish for the day. Vegeta was intent on reading all the bad news. Trunks thought about his date and his new job. Only Bra, made noise, her typical, little girl gibberish.  
  
"I've got to get to the office," announced Bulma. She got up from the table and cleaned up the breakfast dishes. "Good luck on your new job today, honey," she said to Trunks, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. She kissed Bra on the forehead and then did the same to Vegeta. Her husband merely grunted and did not look up from what he was doing. She went out the door.  
  
Trunks stretched his arms again, trying to wake up. Vegeta eyed his son suspiciously. "Out late?"  
  
Trunks looked at Vegeta and thought about saying something snide, but decided not to. "Yeah, out late," he mumbled his reply. Taking his last gulp of coffee, he got up from the table. He walked out the back door of the kitchen, not a word to his sister or father. Bra continued to play with her cereal more than eat it. Vegeta groaned under his breath.  
  
"So you're the new guy they sent from Human Resources," said a very large man to Trunks. The man spit into a near-empty cup he had sitting on his desk. "Have you ever done this type of work before?"  
  
"No sir, I haven't," replied Trunks.  
  
"Well, it ain't gonna be easy," said the man leaning back in his chair. As he spoke, Trunks caught a glimpse of chewing tobacco lodged inside one of his fat cheeks, evidently what he was spitting into the cup. Riding from his chair, the boss said in an irritated tone, "Come with me." He waddled over to a group of men who were standing around laughing. "Boys, this here is Trunks. He will be working with us. Try not to go too hard on him, seeing this is his first day and all," he stated sarcastically. The group of men laughed.  
  
A skinny little man came right up to Trunks and looked him in the eyes. "So, why are you so special?" he asked. "You don't look all that special to me. What do you think boys?"  
  
"He looks kind of scrawny to me," another man chimed in. They all laughed again.  
  
Trunks realized that this was not going to be easy. He did not have any desire to become friends with these men, but he did want to do a good job. A most sinister smile came across his face as the men continued to laugh. 'If they only knew how strong I am,' he thought. "So, where do I start?" he inquired.  
  
The skinny man pointed to a large pile of boxes. "All those need to be moved to the back of the warehouse and emptied. They need sorted by type and put on the shelves. Most of them go on the top shelves," Again snickers were heard. This was obviously a job that none of them wanted to do, so they were passing it off to the new guy.  
  
"No problem," said Trunks cheerfully. He walked over to the pile of boxes, effortlessly picked up five of them and started walking to the back of the warehouse.  
  
The group of men fell silent. Several jaws dropped and gasps could be heard. "What the hell?" said some of the men. They had never seen someone pick up one of the capsule boxes, let alone five! They all had to use a forklift to move that many boxes at one time.  
  
Clearly annoyed, the boss waddled back out to see what all the commotion was about. Then he, too, witnessed Trunks walking with the boxes and he gasped. "Get back to work, you toads!" he bellowed to the idlers. They scrambled to their assigned areas and began working diligently, all eager not to be "shown up" by the new guy. The rest of the morning Trunks spent putting away the supplies. As the day progressed the dock got much busier.  
  
At around noon, Bulma decided that she needed to have lunch with her son and showed up at the dock with her entourage of assistants, Miyuki being one of them. The large man with the chewing tobacco in his mouth was the first to notice Bulma's arrival and immediately stopped what he was doing to greet her. "Why Mrs. Briefs! To what do we owe the honor of your visit?" he questioned as he bowed to her.  
  
"Get up Kwang! Quit being such a brown-noser! I came to see how my son was doing and to have lunch with him. Where is he?" she asked, looking around. Although she didn't like Kwang very much as a person, she respected him as a supervisor. No one else had managed to get this group of men to put out the kind of work that he was able to.  
  
Kwang's face held a look of complete surprise when he realized that the new guy to whom he'd been so rude since he got there was none other than the big boss's son. "Uh...um...your son, Mrs. Briefs?"  
  
Upon hearing that the new guy was Bulma's son, a number of the other employees were so shocked by the news that they dropped several things on the ground. The skinny little man, who seemed to be the second-in-command, came over to Bulma and said, "I will get him right away Mrs. Briefs." He scurried off to find Trunks. In the meanwhile, Miyuki was getting really nervous. She had no idea how she would get through this lunch without giving away their little secret, but she had to try. Bulma must not find out about her and Trunks! It would ruin her relationship with her boss, she was sure of it.  
  
Trunks came around a corner, his white polo shirt covered in dirt and sweat. "Hi, Mom," he said and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He saw Miyuki standing behind her and gave her a quick wink. Miyuki didn't wink back, but instead made a face at him.  
  
"Uh Trunks, lunch is usually thirty minutes, but you take as long as you want," said Kwang as Trunks walked out with his mother and her entourage of white lab coats.  
  
"I'll be back on time, boss," Trunks replied, flashing a little wave at Kwang.  
  
Lunch was excruciatingly painful for Miyuki. Trunks sat directly across from her at the table and Bulma sat next to her. They were at a long table in the lunchroom. "Honey," said Bulma to her son, "you remember Miyuki from the other day in my office, don't you?"  
  
"Um, vaguely," he said with a smirk.  
  
Miyuki pressed her lips together, trying to keep from smiling. She felt him rub his foot against her right calf and the touch sent waves of pleasure throughout her body. Shaking it off, she gave Trunks a nasty look and he stopped what he was doing.  
  
Bulma happened to be talking to one of her other assistants about something and totally missed the exchange between the two. She turned back to face the two of them. "So, how is your first day of work going?"  
  
"Fine, just fine. It's pretty easy," he responded between bites of his lunch. He had been working hard all morning and was very hungry.  
  
"Well," said Miyuki, rising from her seat. "I need to be getting back to the lab. Nice to meet you, um, what was your name again?" she said.  
  
"Trunks," he answered. He supposed he deserved that dig for what he had said earlier.  
  
After Miyuki left, Bulma moved over to sit next to her son. She got close to him and asked, "So, what do you think of her?"  
  
"Who?" questioned Trunks.  
  
"Oh honestly! Of Miyuki!" she said as she flicked him on the head with her thumb and first finger.  
  
"Her? She's okay, I guess. Why do you ask?" replied Trunks, a little wary and curious as to why his mother would be interested in what he thought about her.  
  
"Because she is available and I really like her," said Bulma with a twinkle in her eye. "Why don't you ask her out?"  
  
"Mom!" exclaimed Trunks.  
  
"Well, I'm just saying...oh never mind." Bulma looked at her son's shocked expression and decided to drop the subject. Her approving of a girl her son dated was like the kiss of death.  
  
The rest of Trunks' first day at work went much like the morning, the only exception being that the men he worked with were much nicer to him than they had been before lunch. By the time he got home, Trunks was worn out. He took another shower and, after drying off and changing clothes, sprawled out on his bed. He debated on going downstairs for dinner or calling Miyuki. He chose to call Miyuki.  
  
"Hello," she said.  
  
"Hi, this is Trunks. Remember me?" he asked, a hint of sarcasm in his voice.  
  
"Um, I seem to recall meeting someone by that name. Tell me what you look like and maybe it will jog my memory," she replied with an equal amount of teasing.  
  
"Very funny," replied Trunks.  
  
Miyuki laughed. "So, how was your first day of work?"  
  
"Great. I had lunch with this really cute girl today, too."  
  
"Really? Should I be jealous?" replied Miyuki.  
  
"No, not really. I can't even remember her name," said Trunks.  
  
They continued to banter playfully until Trunks remembered what Bulma had said to him after Miyuki left the lunchroom. "Did you know that my Mom is trying to fix us up?"  
  
"She is not! You are lying!" responded Miyuki.  
  
"Yes, she is! She said I should ask you out."  
  
"You are such a liar!"  
  
"Really! I am not lying!" said Trunks, anxious to convince her that he was telling the truth.  
  
"Whatever!" said Miyuki, not entirely sure that he wasn't making all that up just to get back at her. Nonetheless, they continued to talk for another half hour about their day. Flirtatious undertones were present in every remark they made to each other. Miyuki enjoyed talking to him, and couldn't help thinking about how his touch against her leg had evoked such a response in her body. She wanted desperately to see him again, but didn't want to admit it to herself.  
  
"I gotta go. It's my dinnertime," said Trunks, not realizing the creature of habit he had become when it came to 6:00 and eating. "When can I see you again?"  
  
"I'll be at work tomorrow," she said. "Maybe your Mommy will make you have lunch with me again."  
  
"That would be sheer torture to have to see you in the middle of my workday," responded Trunks.  
  
"Creep!" she indignantly shouted at him.  
  
"You know I am not serious, don't you?" replied Trunks, a little nervous that he may have carried things too far with his mocking remarks.  
  
"Of course I know you aren't serious. You can't wait to see me again, can you?" For some reason, she needed to hear him say yes.  
  
"How about if I come over tonight?" he whispered into the phone.  
  
"You're nuts. How about if we do something this weekend?" As soon as the words came out of her mouth, she immediately regretted it. Hadn't she been repeatedly telling herself that she didn't want any attachments and that she didn't want to go out with him again? And now, instead of sticking to her resolution, she was asking him out!?  
  
Before he could answer her, Trunks heard Bulma's voice shout up the stairs that his dinner was getting cold. He quickly said goodbye to Miyuki and hung up the phone. "She wants to see me again," he said, grinning. "Cool!"  
  
Miyuki wasn't feeling as sure as Trunks that it was such a great idea for them to go out again. There was a knock at her door, and when she answered it, it was her next-door-neighbor, Sayuri. Miyuki let her in. Sayuri went to refrigerator, as she always did and grabbed a soda for the two of them. Miyuki lit a cigarette and sat down on her couch. Sayuri could see that she was deep in thought and asked her what was on her mind.  
  
"What do you think is on my mind?" she replied to her friend.  
  
"Let me see, does he have lavender hair and beautiful blue eyes?" she said with a huge grin on her face.  
  
Miyuki took another puff of her cigarette. As she blew out the smoke, she started to speak, "I'm falling," she said.  
  
Sayuri screamed with delight. "I knew it! You really like him and you are trying to talk yourself out of it. I know that is what you are trying to do. Don't do it. Just go with it. Let yourself feel something! You have been stuffing your feelings the entire time we have known each other."  
  
"Stop!" Miyuki had to cut her friend off. She was talking way too much as usual. "If you were really my friend, you would help me figure a way to get rid of him."  
  
"I am really your friend and that is exactly why I would never help you get rid of him. You deserve a little happiness!" replied Sayuri. "You spend way too much time worrying about your future, and not enough time enjoying the present."  
  
Miyuki stared at her cigarette. She knew deep down that her friend was right. She felt so mixed up inside, but it felt good. It had been a long time since the though of someone's touch made her heart skip a beat. It was scary and exciting at the same time. She shared about their date with her friend and the exchange between them on the phone and at work. She still had a silly smile on her face that would not go away. She felt genuinely happy for the first time in a very long time. 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6  
  
Disclaimer: Same as the other chapters  
  
Three weeks went by fast for Trunks. His job was going great. He knew he must be officially one of "the guys" because they started calling him by his name instead of "Hey, kid!" but being Bulma's son didn't make his job any easier.  
  
Trunks and Miyuki had either seen each other or spoken every night since their first date. They went out to movies together and sometimes they watched DVD's at Miyuki's apartment. Trunks brought a television and his video game system over since Miyuki didn't have one. They had tried to be careful about appearing in really public places. A lot of times Trunks wore a cap to disguise himself.  
  
Miyuki was enjoying Trunks' company tremendously and hadn't realized how lonely her life had been before he had wandered into it. She wished that she was one of those people who could just live for the moment, but she wasn't. Miyuki was a planner. She had her life mapped out, and a relationship was not part of it. At times it tore her apart inside when she thought about what it would be like without his presence. She had told herself countless times not to answer her phone when he called or to say that she had plans when he asked to meet her, but she never was able to follow through. Deep down she wanted nothing more than to have his arms wrapped around her and his lips pressed against hers. Trunks had never gone beyond kissing her, but she knew that it wouldn't be long before he wanted more. There were times when she wanted to forget about everything and rip his clothes off and have wild passionate sex with him, but her brain always managed to talk her out of it.  
  
Trunks still avoided contact with Vegeta as much as possible. When they were in the same room, such as at dinner, they barely spoke. Trunks had not trained with his father since he started his job. Vegeta was too proud to ask, and Trunks was too stubborn to give in. Bulma watched helplessly, as the two men she loved grew farther and farther apart. Her son was spending a lot of time away from the house, and she was dying to know what he was doing.  
  
Even Goten noticed a change in Trunks, mostly because he wasn't calling him everyday. Even though he thought his friend really needed a girlfriend, he was a little jealous of the time Trunks spent with her, especially since he didn't have a girlfriend, too. "Dude, doesn't she have a friend that you can fix me up with?"  
  
"Well, she has a friend, but she won't go out with you because your not 18 and she doesn't want to get arrested." Trunks and Miyuki had this conversation at one point about a double date, but Sayuri wanted no part of it.  
  
"Why did you tell her I wasn't 18?" whined Goten.  
  
"Because I don't lie to her! We have an honest relationship. Ever heard of that?" replied Trunks.  
  
"She will turn on you. I'm telling you dude. All women are the same."  
  
"Whatever," said Trunks with a smile. He would try again to beg Sayuri to go out with him.  
  
One lazy afternoon, Miyuki was sitting at her table surfing the Internet and smoking a cigarette when her cell phone rang. She looked at the number. It's him, she thought. 'I shouldn't answer,' but she did anyway. "Hello," she said in her sexiest voice.  
  
"Hello," said Trunks.  
  
"Whatcha doin'?"  
  
"Standing outside your apartment," he replied.  
  
"What?" Miyuki ran over to her window and pulled back the curtain. Sure enough, Trunks was standing at the bottom of her stairs. He waved up at her and she waved back. "How dare you come over without calling me first," she scolded into the phone.  
  
"I am calling you. How do you think I am talking to you right now?" he said and smiled at her.  
  
She glared at him and, in a dramatic fashion, hung up the phone on him. Still looking at him, she crossed her arms and licked her lips seductively.  
  
Trunks mouth curled up in a Vegeta-like smirk and he started walking up the stairs that lead to her front door. He pointed to her in the window and then pointed to the door, motioning for her to come and open it.  
  
She didn't budge, but just kept looking at him and smiling. He put his hands together and mouthed the word "please," hoping that would get her to open the door. She tilted her head to the side and looked up as if contemplating whether she should or not. Finally, she disappeared from the window and appeared at the door to her apartment. "I hope you know that I don't have any make-up on and haven't done anything to my hair—" Before she could finish, Trunks had pulled her into an embrace and had stopped her conversation by placing his mouth over hers. She shut her eyes and returned his kiss with an equal amount of enthusiasm.  
  
He pulled away from her. "You look fabulous, just like you always do. In fact, I kinda like you this way." She wore a pair of gray sweat shorts, which were folded over the waist and a white sleeveless t-shirt, which left her stomach exposed. Trunks pulled away from her to eye her bared stomach. He had never actually seen it before and he was shocked that she had a tattoo pattern that surrounded her belly button, along with a gold belly button ring. "Do you have any more tattoos I should know about?" he asked, lifting a lavender eyebrow.  
  
"Maybe someday I will show them to you," she replied, a coy little smile on her face. Miyuki turned and walked over to her table, where she had been surfing on her computer. While she saved what she was doing, Trunks continued to scrutinize her appearance. He had never seen her—not looking perfect. She was wearing glasses and had her hair in a long braid down her back.  
  
"So, you seem to like to put holes in your body," he observed. Chuckling, he took out his cell phone and focused the camera function in on her exposed navel. Before she knew it, he had taken a picture of it, and then quickly snapped one of her face.  
  
She flashed him an annoyed look. "Yeah, what if I do like to put holes in my body? What of it?" she challenged.  
  
"I think it's pretty sexy," remarked Trunks.  
  
"How come you don't have your ear pierced?" asked Miyuki as she finished shutting off her PC and took one last puff of her lit cigarette before putting it out.  
  
Trunks laughed nervously. "Are you kidding me? My father would rip me up one side and down the other if I ever did something like that." He sat down at one of the chairs by her table.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you were an adult now," she teased.  
  
Trunks shut his eyes and rubbed his forehead. Sometimes her flippant remarks were borderline cruel, and this was one of those times. He kept his head down and didn't look at her.  
  
Miyuki closed her laptop and glanced over at Trunks. When he didn't look back at her she realized what she said must have hurt him. She walked over to him and took his hand. "I'm sorry. That was mean," she said softly.  
  
Trunks stood up and looked her right in the eyes. "I will joke with you about anything in the world, except my father," he said to her with a very serious tone.  
  
She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him close. He did the same. The last thing she ever wanted to do was hurt Trunks or make him mad. She was accustomed to using sarcasm as a defense whenever she was nervous. And being around him always made her nervous. She released her hold on him and pulled back a bit so she could look at his face again. "Why are you so afraid of your father?" she asked in a whisper.  
  
Trunks stayed quiet, thinking hard about how he should answer this question. Unfortunately, there was no easy answer. "I want to tell you about my father, but it's hard to talk about," he finally replied.  
  
"You can tell me anything," she stated softly. "Come over here and sit down and tell me everything," she said gently pulling him toward the couch. When they both sat down, Miyuki turned sideways to face him, but Trunks didn't turn toward her. She put her hand on his shoulder, "Tell me," she prompted.  
  
"My father was born to a race known as Saiyans. They were a violent race of mercenaries that were hired to kill many species and purge planets of their civilizations for profit. For most of his life, my father was a willing participant in the destruction of many aliens and their worlds. Ironically, the Saiyans home planet was destroyed by the very person who used them to kill so many others; an evil tyrant named Freiza. Today, only two remain of the Saiyan race; he and a man named Goku." He looked up at Miyuki, who at this point had her hand over her mouth. Trunks took a deep breath and then continued, "So, you see, that makes me half-Saiyan and half- human. My father was brought up to be a Saiyan warrior, strong and proud, and because of that, would never let me get out of line when I was younger. I don't like to confront him and have avoided arguing with him for most of my life. Recently, I finally started fighting back, and I am not sure that I like how I feel about some of the harsh things I have said to him."  
  
"I knew your family was different, but..." she was very puzzled. "If he is a murderer, how on earth did he get hooked up with Bulma?" Bulma seemed like one of the most levelheaded women she knew. She idolized her and wanted to be just like her. This didn't seem like something the Bulma she knew would do.  
  
"Another long story. My father and mother sort of got caught up in the heat of the moment when I was conceived. I was an accident. The fact is he never really was around very much when I was younger, not until my sister was born."  
  
Again, Miyuki was shocked. She had no idea that Bulma had gotten pregnant by mistake. For some strange reason, this was even more outrageous than the fact that Trunks' father was an alien. "So, your mom isn't perfect?" said Miyuki. It just couldn't be true.  
  
"Far from it. My mom has made her share of mistakes in her lifetime," replied Trunks.  
  
As they both sat in the silence that followed, Trunks wondered what she was thinking about him. Miyuki sat with a stunned look on her face. She took off her glasses and set them on the table and then lit a cigarette. This was a lot of information for her to process.  
  
Trunks got up and grabbed a pair of her sandals that were close by. He handed the to her. "Put these on. I have something to show you."  
  
She took the sandals from him and put them on but she hardly knew what she was doing. Her mind was racing with all the information that he had just revealed to her. When she had finished putting them on she stood up. Trunks held out his hand for her to follow him. She grabbed her glasses and took a few puffs of her cigarette before stubbing it out in the ashtray then took his hand and they went outside. When they got to the bottom of her stairs, Trunks told her to climb on his back. After she did so, he slowly raised up into the air. Miyuki couldn't believe what was happening and she closed her eyes buried her face in his back. Trunks started flying faster and they swiftly made it up above the city.  
  
"Where do you want to go?" he asked. "I can take you anywhere."  
  
She held onto him with a death grip and slowly opened her eyes. She looked down at the city and it was an awesome sight. She could see the Capsule Corporation compound in the distance. She held on to him tighter. "Anywhere," she replied.  
  
Trunks looked around and spotted a park. He headed toward it. When he touched down, Miyuki was still holding tight to him. Miyuki slowly put her feet on the ground and loosened her grip around his neck. When she was standing on her own two feet, she at last let go of him. She smiled. "I guess you weren't lying," she said smiling.  
  
Trunks shook his head. "I would never, ever lie to you. I hope you know that, Miyuki."  
  
They decided to take a walk together. As they strolled, Trunks told her more of the history of how his parents got together. Miyuki was very interested. It helped her to know that, with all the mistakes Bulma had made, she was able to rise above them and become the powerful and influential woman that she was today. Trunks kept taking pictures of her with his phone, which pissed her off to no end.  
  
As they were walking they found a Frisbee that someone had left behind and they decided to play with it. "Now, you can't use any of those powers you have!" Miyuki warned Trunks.  
  
"Oh, I won't." he said and winked at her. They began to toss the Frisbee around and it seemed to Miyuki that she had to work much harder and catching it than Trunks did. In a fit of frustration, she removed her sandals, and threw them and the Frisbee at him at the same time. Laughing, he flew around and caught all three effortlessly before landed in front of her in order to hand her sandals back to her. She grabbed the sandals from him and dropped them on the ground. "Show off," she mumbled as Trunks grinned. He returned to his place and stood waving the Frisbee, as if daring her to take it from him. She ran straight for him and tackled him to the ground, then tried to steal the Frisbee away from him. With her on top, Trunks pretended that he couldn't get up, but did not release his hold on the Frisbee. They rolled around on the ground together and Trunks managed to gain the upper hand, pinning her to the ground so that she couldn't move. "Now, what are you going to do?" he asked, as he bent his face down towards hers.  
  
She lifted her head up slightly and gently traced his lips with her tongue. He let go of her arms so that he could embrace her and crushed his lips against hers. When Trunks had relaxed his grip on her, she turned him over so that she was on top. They stared at each other for a moment, before quickly separating. The park was not the place to be having an intimate encounter. Miyuki got up first and held out her hand to help Trunks up. "Are you hungry?" asked Trunks, while brushing off some dried grass from his pants.  
  
"I am always hungry," Miyuki replied.  
  
"Do you want to walk, or fly?" asked Trunks.  
  
"I guess I could try the flying thing again."  
  
Trunks had her get on his back again. They flew to a nearby restaurant and got a bite to eat. After eating they ended up going back to Miyuki's apartment. Miyuki invited Trunks in. As they sat together on the couch, Miyuki rested her head on Trunks' shoulder and shut her eyes. Trunks settled back on the couch and slid his arm around her back. She wrapped her arms around his chest and, before she knew it had drifted off to sleep. Relaxed and happy, Trunks also closed his eyes and dozed off. The two of them slept for a little while in each other's arms.  
  
When Trunks finally awoke, he felt Miyuki next to him and at first thought he was dreaming. He looked down and saw her asleep in his arms. He gently picked her up and carried her into her bedroom. He had never been in her bedroom and was very curious as to what treasures laid in it. Like the rest of her apartment, her bedroom held only the bare necessities. He gently laid her down onto the bed and reluctantly undid his arms from around her warm body. She made a soft groaning noise as Trunks pulled away from her. She reached out to him and grabbed what she could and held on. "Don't go," she whispered sleepily.  
  
"I can stay for a little while longer," he said smiling as he lay down next to her. He could hardly believe he was in her bed. He had dreamed of this moment--of course in a different way--but this was close enough. She again nestled into the nook of his shoulder and fell asleep. It wasn't long before Trunks joined her in slumber. Sometime during the night, Trunks got up. He whispered a goodbye to her and kissed her, but doubted she would remember his leaving.  
  
The next day, Trunks stormed into his mother's office, upset that she had abruptly ordered him away from his job on the loading dock. "What's so damned important?" he said as he walked in. To his great surprise, Vegeta was there, also.  
  
Bulma kept her back to him and was staring out the window. "Sit down, Trunks," she commanded in an irritated voice.  
  
Trunks did as he was told and glanced at Vegeta with a questioning look.  
  
Vegeta just stared forward, no emotion whatsoever on his face.  
  
A few minutes later, Miyuki walked into Bulma's office. She was shocked to see Trunks and Vegeta there as well. "You wanted to see me, Bulma?" she asked, suddenly very nervous.  
  
"Sit down Miyuki," she said with an equal amount of irritation.  
  
Bulma turned around and faced the two of them. Fuming, she snatched up a newspaper that was on her desk and walked over to her son. "What the hell is THIS?" she snapped, waving the paper in front of his face.  
  
Trunks stared at the paper. To his horror, on the front of the Society Page were several pictures of him and Miyuki from their day at the park. Pictures of them kissing, wrestling, walking hand in hand and everything else they had done that day, printed in unmistakable black-and-white, for the whole world to see.  
  
"Shit," said Trunks.  
  
Author's note: Okay, before you start freaking out like everyone else who read the story before I posted it, this will all be explained in the next chapter. Please be patient. That is why it's called a cliffhanger. 


	7. Chapter 7 the lemon chapter

Warning: This chapter contains Lemons so read at your own risk.  
  
Chapter 7  
  
Trunks sank down in his seat. Miyuki looked at the floor and did not look at the paper Bulma had placed before her son.  
  
"What do you have to say for yourselves?" she shouted. "I have never been so embarrassed in all my life! Imagine my surprise when my secretary said there were thirty calls from the press wanting to know what I thought of the mysterious woman in my sons life." Bulma was pacing and her hands were waving wildly in the air. "I had no idea what they were talking about until I saw this. Could the two of you been any less discrete?"  
  
Miyuki felt the tears forming in her eyes. This was not how she wanted Bulma to find out about the two of them.  
  
Trunks stood up and dropped the paper on his mother's desk. "This is all my fault, Mom. Don't blame Miyuki for this."  
  
"Looks to me like she was a very willing participant!" wailed Bulma to her son.  
  
Miyuki kept looking at the floor. She was deathly afraid of Vegeta and could feel his eyes upon her. She didn't want to make Bulma any angrier with her, but at the same time, she felt she needed to speak. The words got just caught in her throat and wouldn't come out.  
  
Bulma looked at Vegeta. "Well," she said to her husband, "Don't you have anything to say?"  
  
With arms folded, Vegeta came out from the corner in which he's been standing and circled Miyuki to see her from every angle. In a move that surprised everyone, he stopped next to Trunks and put his arm on his son's shoulder. "I approve," he said in a deep, low voice.  
  
"You approve?!" shrieked Bulma. "I didn't ask you if you approved! I asked you if you had anything to say to your son!"  
  
Vegeta looked directly into Trunks eyes. He removed his hand from his son's shoulder and merely said, "As you know, I do not care for public displays of affection. You must learn to be more careful."  
  
Bulma was steaming. Speechless with anger, she growled at her husband.  
  
"What do you want me to say, woman?" he said to Bulma. "He is a man now, and men have needs. You said it yourself that he is growing up."  
  
If there was one thing Bulma hated, it was when Vegeta used her own words against her. Bulma turned around to face her window in a huff.  
  
Miyuki lifted her head when the fighting stopped and looked at Trunks. His face softened when he saw the tears in her eyes. She stood up and with a shaky voice stated, "Bulma, I am sorry you found out about us like this. I hope you understand that I never intended to hurt you in any way. It is my fault that you didn't know about our relationship, not Trunks'. I begged him not to tell you because I didn't want to jeopardize my job. I wasn't sure how you would react. Please, believe that I am truly sorry." She sank back down in the chair and hung her head.  
  
Trunks and Vegeta listened to her words intently. Bulma breathed a heavy sigh and leaned her head into her hand. She slowly turned and sat down in her office chair. Trunks looked at his Mother with remorse. Vegeta now understood why his son hadn't been training with him.  
  
"Miyuki," said Bulma, her tone now tinged with disappointment. "I am not angry that you are seeing my son. If I could have chosen a woman for my son to date, it would have been you. What I am upset about is that you kept this from me." She lifted her head and looked at Trunks. "I trusted both of you."  
  
"She explained why she didn't tell you. Isn't that enough?" said Vegeta to his mate.  
  
"Did I ask you your opinion?" she spat at Vegeta.  
  
"No, but you are going to get it," he retorted with princely authority. "She is obviously remorseful and so is the boy. It is time to drop this!"  
  
Trunks was beside himself. Never in a million years would he have expected Vegeta to take his side over Bulma's. 'Perhaps I've misjudged him,' he thought.  
  
Bulma was also shocked at what her mate had said. She stared at the two of them standing next to each other and looking back at her, so much more alike than either was willing to admit. Her head then turned to Miyuki who hadn't had the courage to look up. "Miyuki, look at me."  
  
Taking a deep breath, Miyuki picked her head up, tears streaming down her face.  
  
Bulma got up from her chair, came around the desk and handed Miyuki some tissues. She kept a few for herself as she could feel tears forming in her eyes as well. "How long have the two of you been seeing each other?" asked Bulma calmly.  
  
"A couple of weeks," Miyuki answered.  
  
"The day Father and I had that huge fight and I met her in your office. That was the day I asked her out," said Trunks.  
  
"So, you've been hiding it from me all this time?" said Bulma as a tear escaped down her cheek. As tough as she was, she could never be around someone who was crying and not cry herself. "Why would you do that?"  
  
"We just didn't know how you would react," said Trunks. "Actually, I'm glad you found out. I want everyone in the world to know how much I care about this woman."  
  
They were all silent, except a few sniffles from the women in the room when they blew their noses. After a few moments of strained silence, Miyuki asked, "May I go back to work now?"  
  
Bulma looked at her. "Yes, go ahead. I will speak with you later."  
  
Miyuki got up and briskly walked out the door. Trunks started to follow her, but Vegeta touched his arm and stopped him. "Let her go," he said.  
  
Trunks turned and looked at his father. Never before had Vegeta shown him this much compassion. "Father, I have to talk to her," he said.  
  
"Give her some time. If there is one thing I have learned about your mother it is that when she is upset, the best thing is to stay away from her for a while."  
  
"I guess I will go back to work then, too," said Trunks.  
  
"Why don't you show me where you work," offered Vegeta.  
  
"Okay," replied Trunks.  
  
Bulma watched her husband and son leave her office together. Perhaps she had been too hard on Miyuki. At times Miyuki seemed so fragile, and at other times she was the toughest little lady she had ever met. Regardless, she was obviously shaken by the incident.  
  
Vegeta accompanied his son to the dock and for the rest of the day, he and Trunks worked together. It became a contest between the two to see who could do more in less time. Never before had so much unloading and loading happened on the dock as it did that day. Kwang was ecstatic. Every single order they had was shipped that day. When the shift ended, he shook Vegeta's hand, thanking him for the help and telling him he was welcome anytime to work again. Vegeta grunted a goodbye to the strange fat man and then father and son flew off together in a race to see who would get home first.  
  
Trunks tried ten times to reach Miyuki but she wasn't answering her cell phone. He gave up for a while after leaving her several messages. As soon as he and Vegeta got home and he had showered off the day's sweat, he tried one more time to call her. When her voicemail clicked on yet again, he said, "Miyuki, I know you are avoiding me. I am coming over to your apartment right now and I want to talk to you!"  
  
He flew to her apartment. When he arrived, he banged on the door forcefully determined not to leave until they talked. Sayuri was the one who eventually opened the door. "I don't think she wants to talk to you," said Sayuri breathlessly. "She keeps saying her life is over. That's all she has told me. You better not have hurt her!" said Sayuri pointing an accusing finger at him.  
  
"Please, believe me. It is all a big misunderstanding. I need to talk to her," pleaded Trunks.  
  
Sayuri looked at him skeptically for a moment, but decided to open the door and let him in before she let herself out.  
  
Miyuki was sitting on her couch, smoking a cigarette. The apartment was thick with smoke as if she had been doing nothing but smoke since she got home from work.  
  
Trunks walked in. He could see that she had been crying for a long time because her cheeks were red and her eyes were puffy. He walked over to the couch and sat down next to her. "Miyuki, you have to talk to me. What are you thinking?" he pleaded, hoping for a reaction.  
  
She said nothing, avoided his gaze and continued to smoke her cigarette.  
  
"Can you believe that my father actually came over to where I work and helped me? We managed to fill every single order that was waiting. Was Kwang ever surprised! I don't think there will be anything for us to do tomorrow," he said with a small chuckle.  
  
Miyuki finally turned her head to face him. Wordlessly, she reached up to brush away that stray piece of lavender hair out of his eyes. Trunks loved when she played with his hair. She turned her attention back to her cigarette and took another puff.  
  
He put one finger on her bare arm and gently stroked up and down. She shut her eyes at the exquisite feel of his touch. She opened her eyes again and stubbed out her cigarette, blowing the last of the smoke from her mouth. She again turned to Trunks. "That feels really good," she whispered.  
  
"Are you going to talk to me?" asked Trunks, moving closer to her.  
  
A tear ran down her cheek as she spoke. "I don't have much to say," she said softly.  
  
"What are you thinking?" he asked her again.  
  
She went silent for a moment. There were so many thoughts dancing around in her head that she didn't know which one to start with. "My biggest fear is that because Bulma knows about us, she won't give me the promotion I have been seeking and I will be stuck here while you go off to college."  
  
The promotion. She hadn't talked about that since the first day they met. Trunks had hoped she had changed her mind and decided not to seek the promotion and transfer. He stood up and started pacing around the apartment. "That's not a problem. I can always go to the college in town. It will be easy enough for my Mom to pull some strings to get me enrolled there in the fall." Despite his upbeat words, he was visibly upset by what Miyuki had just said.  
  
"No, Trunks. Don't change your plans because of me, and don't expect me to change my plans because of you," she said as more tears fell down her cheek. She was amazed that she had any tears left to shed.  
  
"Miyuki," he said as he felt tears pricking in his own eyes, "I love you."  
  
She got up from the couch and walked over to him. Deep down, she wanted so much to return his love, but she was so unsure about herself that she couldn't say the words. Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him towards her. Their lips pressed together in a passionate kiss. His hands made their way around her waist and he felt the bare skin of her back that snuck out of the bottom of her shirt. The feel of his fingers on her flesh made her eager for more. She ran her hands down the middle of his back and found the bottom of his shirt. She slowly pulled it up and reached underneath to seek the warm skin of his back. Her fingertips traced each perfectly formed muscle as she slowly worked his shirt up to his arms. Their kisses became more heated and Trunks found himself with his hands under her shirt feeling the soft skin of her back and shoulders.  
  
Miyuki slowly pulled away from him and tugged his shirt the rest of the way over his head. Breathing heavy, she looked at his chest. It was a sight to behold. "I want you!" she said looking right in his eyes.  
  
"I..." that was all he managed to utter before Miyuki pulled away and removed her own shirt to reveal her breasts. She threw her shirt at him, turned and disappeared into her bedroom. Trunks wasn't sure what to do next; he had never done this before. He wondered if he should tell her or not. He finally decided to follow her into the bedroom and make her talk to him. He had to know what she was feeling and what her future plans were.  
  
When he got inside the doorway, she was lying back on the bed wearing nothing but a pair of lacy white bikini panties. She slowly got up on her knees and motioned for him to come over to her. Without another thought, he rushed to the bed and pulled her to him. His lips crushed hers in a fervent kiss while his hand surrounded her breast. He pulled his lips away from hers and his lips replaced the hand on her breast. Moans of pleasure escaped her lips as he traced her taut nipple with his tongue.  
  
As he stood in front of her, she reached down to his belt and undid the buckle. Miyuki then undid the button and slowly unzipped his pants. As his pants fell to the floor, he pulled away from her and sat on the bed, coaxing his pants off the rest of the way. While Trunks was doing that, Miyuki slid back to the head of the bed and waited for him. Smiling, he turned and crawled to her, lightly resting his weight on top of her body. She wrapped her arms and legs around him and ran her fingers through his hair as they continued their zealous kissing. Miyuki could feel his hardness press against her. The pair rolled to their sides and Miyuki sat up and slowly slid off her panties. As she had sat up, he discovered her other tattoo, which was on her back near her right upper shoulder and had been hidden by her hair. He lifted her hair out of the way so that he could see it more clearly. "Faith?" he questioned softly.  
  
Miyuki looked at him with confusion on her face.  
  
"Your tattoo. It stands for 'faith.' Why did you choose that?" The tattoo was the Japanese kanji symbol for faith.  
  
"Because faith is the only thing that has gotten me this far in life. Faith that there is some power greater than myself guiding the universe, and guiding me to make the right decisions," she uttered as she moved closer to him again. She pushed him on his back and removed his underwear. Now there was no more material between them. Miyuki couldn't wait any longer and climbed on top of Trunks guiding him inside of her. She gently moved up and down on top of him. He grabbed her hips and countered her moves with his own. She leaned over and traced his lips with her tongue. Wanting more, he put a hand on the back of her head and pushed it closer so that their lips met. He then rolled her over so that he was on top and began to thrust in and out of her.  
  
It was over very fast. They climaxed together in a wave of passion and release of all the tension that had built for so long between them, now gone in a rush of pleasure.  
  
After a few moments of catching their breath, Trunks gently moved off of Miyuki and lay next to her. Her hair was covering half of her face and Trunks moved it away so that he could see all of her lovely face. Miyuki traced the outlines of Trunks nose and lips with her fingers. When she got to his lips he kissed her fingertips lightly.  
  
Miyuki sat up and grabbed the sheet that was at the bottom of the bed. She pulled it up and over them, settling her head in the nook of his shoulder. She took her index finger and traced his belly button with the very tip. Trunks grabbed her hand. "Stop that," he said.  
  
"Why?" replied Miyuki.  
  
"Cause it tickles!" he answered back.  
  
"Oh! The big strong man is ticklish! That's good to know," said Miyuki with a big grin on her face.  
  
"Please, don't tell the guys at the loading dock. They will never let me live it down," said Trunks playfully.  
  
Miyuki put her head back down on his shoulder and shut her eyes. She wanted to forever feel as good as she felt right at that moment.  
  
"Miyuki?" questioned Trunks.  
  
"Hmm?" she said without opening her eyes.  
  
"About what we were talking about earlier—," Miyuki picked her head up abruptly and put her hand over his mouth.  
  
"Please don't say anymore. Let's just enjoy the time we have together," she whispered to him. She took her hand away from his mouth, gently kissed his cheek, and then laid her head back on his shoulder.  
  
"Can I just say one more thing?" Trunks asked.  
  
She picked her head up and made a grimace at him. "Now what?" she said forcefully.  
  
"That was my first time," he said in a barely audible voice.  
  
Miyuki's face instantly softened. "I had no idea!" She said before giving him an apologetic kiss. She returned her head to his shoulder and he pulled her closer to him.  
  
A few minutes later, they both drifted off to sleep, the earlier events of the day completely forgotten. 


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8  
  
Trunks woke an hour later to find himself alone in Miyuki's bed. He picked his head up and looked around, wondering where she was. As he attempted to clear his head he yawned and listened for her. He could hear sounds coming from the other room and he smelled an unbelievable aroma drifting from the kitchen. He got out of bed and quickly dressed in his underwear and pants, but could not find his shirt. He searched all over the small room, even looking under the bed, but the shirt was nowhere to be found.  
  
When he walked out of the bedroom, he saw Miyuki in the kitchen cooking. Standing with her back to him, he could see that she was wearing his shirt, her lacy panties, and nothing else. "So, _that's_ why I couldn't find my shirt!"  
  
She jumped when he spoke, obviously startled by his sudden entrance. She smiled at him. "Hungry?" she asked.  
  
"I'm always hungry," he replied. He walked over to where she was standing and wrapped his arms around her from the back as she faced the stove. "Whatcha' making?" he asked as he nuzzled the side of her neck, his lips feeling the softness of her skin.  
  
For a minute, she forgot about cooking and enjoyed the feel of his lips against her flesh, but soon she snapped back to reality and remembered what she was doing. "A surprise, so get out of here till it's done," she said playfully smacking his hand with her spatula.  
  
Trunks pulled away from her and went over to the table. His cell phone started ringing the moment he sat down. He pulled it out of his pocket and glanced at the number on the display. "Is that your girlfriend?" asked Miyuki over her shoulder.  
  
Trunks looked at her and rolled his eyes. Turning sideways in his seat, he flipped up the receiver and answered it, keeping his voice down.  
  
"Dude, where are you at?" said Goten.  
  
"Where am I at? Why do you want to know?" replied Trunks.  
  
"Because, for the last couple of hours, your mom's been over here, carrying on to my mom about you and all I hear is a lot of crying and yelling. What the hell did you do?"  
  
"Didn't you see this morning's edition of the paper?" Trunks whispered into the phone. He didn't want Miyuki to hear what he was talking about.  
  
"No, why? Were you in it?"  
  
"Unfortunately, yes. My mom found out about my girlfriend by reading it in today's society pages. Needless to say, she wasn't too happy about that."  
  
"Ouch! That's cold! So did she ground you or something?" asked Goten.  
  
Trunks smiled because his mother hadn't grounded him in years. "Uh, no. I haven't really talked to her since she blew up at me in her office earlier today. What's weird about the whole thing is that my father is pretty happy for me. He actually approves of Miyuki. But, you know how he is. He sure didn't appreciate seeing our public displays of affection plastered all over the front page of the paper."  
  
Miyuki's head perked up when he heard Trunks mention his father and her name in the same sentence. She looked over at him. Gazing at his handsome features, her mind faded back into the tender moment they had just shared. She had such an honest relationship with him and that was so refreshing for her. Maybe she could change her plans for relocation in order to stay here to be with him. She shook her head and returned again to what she was doing.  
  
Trunks continued talking to Goten. "Why don't you come over to Capsule Corp and get yourself a job? Then you wouldn't have to keep begging Chi- Chi for money and you could take Miyuki's cute neighbor on a real date and pay for it yourself."  
  
"Get a job? I never thought of that. They actually pay you to lift and move stuff?" questioned Goten.  
  
Trunks rolled his eyes. "Yeah. They pay you every week." Sometimes Goten was so much like his father, Goku.  
  
"Where do I go?"  
  
While Trunks was telling him the rest of what he needed to do to work at Capsule Corp., Miyuki brought two plates over to the table and cleared some space for them to eat. "Gotta go. My dinner is being served to me," he said and smiled at Miyuki.  
  
"You are at her place? Well why didn't you say so? Later!" Goten said before hanging up the phone.  
  
Shaking his head and chuckling, Trunks hung up his phone. As he began to eat, he looked over to Miyuki who seemed deep in thought. "Delicious," he declared, smiling and pointing at his plate.  
  
"I am aren't I," she responded with a smile. In stagy fashion, she batted her eyelashes a few times. Trunks rested his head in his hand and grinned "What did your friend want?" asked Miyuki.  
  
"He said my mom was over at his house crying to his mom. He called to find out what I had done to her."  
  
Miyuki's face turned sad. "I really didn't mean to hurt her. She was so angry. I didn't like the way your dad was looking at me either."  
  
"Don't worry about my father. That's just the way he is. The fact that he even acknowledged your existence is a plus. As for my mom, she'll get over it. We do need to talk to her, though."  
  
"I know," said Miyuki with a sigh. "I'll talk to her first thing tomorrow when I go back to work."  
  
"You didn't see her after we got reamed?" asked Trunks between bites.  
  
"No, I tried to go back to work, but I couldn't concentrate so I just came home. The whole thing took me off guard. To see our pictures in the paper in that position just made me feel...violated. Then, to have seen Bulma so angry and feeling your father looking through me, I was really unsettled. I feel much better now," she said, giving him a knowing wink.  
  
Trunks smiled and blushed a little. "I'll talk to her, too. I'm sure after she talks to Chi-Chi, she'll feel better."  
  
They continued to eat in silence. When Trunks finished, he stretched his arms, slouched in his chair and watched Miyuki finish eating. She looked up to see him staring at her and grinned. Her next words took him by surprise. "That wasn't really your first time was it?" asked Miyuki.  
  
Trunks blushed again and looked at the floor. "Yeah, it was. Why don't you believe that?"  
  
"Well, because...you seemed to know what you were doing. It shocked me, I guess. You must read a lot of sex books or something," she remarked as she took her last bite of dinner.  
  
Trunks laughed at her comment. "No, I don't read a lot of books about sex, or magazines for that matter. I guess you can thank my father's genes for my sex drive. Saiyans are known for particularly good skills in that area."  
  
"Really?" she replied. "I will be sure to thank your father next time I see him."  
  
"Don't you dare!" said Trunks, alarmed. "It's bad enough they know about us. I'm not sure I'm ready to discuss sex with my father." He shuddered at the thought of it. "So, I take it that wasn't your first time."  
  
"Let's not get into a discussion about my past. I have made my share of mistakes. I'll just say that I've learned from them and leave it at that," she replied, growing a little uncomfortable.  
  
A little disappointed, but still curious, Trunks didn't see the harm in his question so he continued to prod her for information on her sexual past, "So, it wasn't your first time, then."  
  
Now, Miyuki was visibly pissed that he wanted to continue interrogating her about her past. "What exactly do you want to know, Trunks?" she snapped. "How many other men I have been with? Or how many times? Which notch are you in my bedpost? Perhaps you would like me to tell you in minute detail about which positions I have experienced?" she shouted, glaring at him.  
  
Trunks blue eyes went wide, obviously shocked by the viciousness of her words. Miyuki stood up from the table and took off his shirt, forcefully threw it at him. She then turned and ran to her bedroom, slamming the door behind her. Trunks sat in a daze for a moment, not exactly sure what had just happened. He thought he was asking her an innocent question, not realizing this was such a touchy subject for her. He dropped his shirt on the floor and went to the door of her bedroom. When he found it locked, he pounded on it, but she did not make any moves to open the door. "Open the door, Miyuki! If you don't, you know I can break it down!" he warned into the closed door. He thought back to Goten's earlier warning about how women turn on you. Was this really happening?  
  
As he was mulling this over, she finally unlocked and opened the door. He didn't come into the room, but leaned against the doorframe with arms crossed, while Miyuki walked away to sit on her bed. Trunks observed that she had gotten dressed while she was in her bedroom alone. "If I said something to upset you, I'm sorry. I was just curious," he admitted, "and maybe a little jealous," he explained.  
  
Miyuki, who was staring at the floor, lifted her head to face him. "Look, Trunks, you have your skeletons in your closet and so do I. I am not proud of all the actions of my past," she said softly. "Perhaps someday I will feel comfortable enough to tell you about it, but not today, and not now. Not after what we just shared. Can you understand what I'm saying?"  
  
He walked over to stand in front of her and gently took her face in his hands. "I totally understand." He knelt and pressed his body forward against the side of her bed. She brought her legs up and wrapped them around his torso as his arms came up to embrace her. "There is nothing you could ever tell me that would change how I feel about you. I meant it when I told you that I love you. I understand if you don't feel the same, but just know that I do love you with all my heart. The last thing in the world I ever want to do is hurt you."  
  
Miyuki leaned forward, putting her arms under his and pulling him tightly against her. She knew deep in her heart that she loved him too, but she was afraid to say it out loud. Uttering those three words would make it real and she believed it would open her up to all kinds of pain that she didn't want to experience ever again. Whenever she loved someone, she ended up hurt and devastated. Up until she met Trunks, she was certain she had built an impenetrable wall around her feelings. Now, he was here with all his strength and amazing gentleness, punching a hole in that emotional wall, and she didn't want to hurt like that ever again.  
  
They stayed holding each other for a long time, neither one wanting to let go. Miyuki was the first to release her hold. She glanced at the clock and noticed that it was getting late. "I need to get some sleep," she finally whispered in his ear.  
  
He stood up and took her hand. She then stood and hugged him some more. He tilted her face to his and kissed her lips gently. She pulled away, sliding her hands down his arms to rest in his hands. They smiled at each other, both knowing that things would be okay between them.  
  
When they left the bedroom, Miyuki ran ahead of him and picked his shirt up from the floor. She put it on over her clothes and crossed her arms, holding tight to the material. Trunks gave her a playful look and tried to get it back from her. "Are you going to make me walk into my house without a shirt on? That's hardly discrete," he joked.  
  
"You can't have this shirt back. It's mine! Besides, your father would be proud." She smiled at him.  
  
He gave in and let her keep the shirt. "Thanks to you, I will have to sneak in the back door. If my mother saw me come in without a shirt, she would probably have a stroke!"  
  
They continued kissing and saying goodbye for another fifteen minutes or so. Before he could leave, Trunks had to go searching for his shoes since he had no idea where they had ended up. When he finally found them, he put them on, and gave Miyuki one last kiss before leaving, shirtless.  
  
Trunks arrived at Capsule Corp. and entered his house through the kitchen door, in hopes that no one would be there. To his astonishment, Vegeta was sitting at the table, drinking a glass of water and staring off into space. When Trunks walked in, he raised a dark eyebrow at him. "Did you have a shirt when you left the house, boy?" he asked casually  
  
Reddening a little, Trunks just smiled at him and did not respond. He suspected that his father had more than an idea of what happened to his shirt and didn't need to explain anything. Trunks walked over to the refrigerator, pulled out a drink for himself and sat across from Vegeta. "Father, I want to thank you for coming to where I work. It meant a lot to me."  
  
"I had nothing better to do," replied Vegeta, visibly embarrassed by his son's gratitude.  
  
Trunks smiled, knowing that this was probably the only acknowledgement he was going to get from his father. He took a sip of his drink and slouched back in his chair.  
  
After a few minutes, Vegeta asked, "So, how was it?"  
  
Startled by his question, Trunks choked and almost spit out his drink. Quickly recovering, he asked, "How was what?"  
  
"The girl, how was it?" said Vegeta, prodding his son for more information.  
  
Trunks was very confused. "Are you asking me about Miyuki?" he questioned, reluctant to share what had just gone on between them.  
  
"Your mother and I have our best sex after a big argument," his father stated matter-of-factly.  
  
"Okay, _that's_ way more than I really wanted to know!" replied Trunks. He had been taken by surprise with his father's candid remarks. Yet, he was enjoying the fact that they were sharing on this type of level, not just as father and son, but as two adults.  
  
"All I can tell you is," Vegeta cleared his throat, visibly uncomfortable with his next remark, "you need to protect yourself against unwanted...you know what I am talking about."  
  
"You mean birth control?" Trunks opened his eyes wide, remembering that Miyuki and he had not discussed this issue. Everything between them happened so fast.  
  
"Obviously, you neglected to think about that," said Vegeta, seeing the startled look on his son's face. "So, how was it?"  
  
Trunks couldn't help but smile at the memory. Vegeta lowly chuckled and smiled back, knowing the look on his son's face meant things had gone well.  
  
At that very moment, his mother and Bra walked into the room. Bulma was surprised to see the two of them at the table, as she had not heard any arguing going on when she approached the kitchen. "Hi Daddy," said Bra as she climbed up into his lap. Bulma looked at Trunks and after catching his glance looked away again. She was still a little upset with Miyuki and Trunks, but deep down she was also happy they had found each other. She went over to the refrigerator and got a drink for both her and Bra. She sat down next to Vegeta. Trunks and Bra were making nasty faces at each other, as they often did at the table.  
  
Bulma was the first to break the awkward silence, "Trunks, I would like to invite you and Miyuki to dinner with the family. Goten could come, and if Miyuki has any friends, they are welcome as well. Do you think she will go for that?"  
  
Trunks turned his attention away from his sister's face and toward his mother. He thought for a moment before responding. "Yeah, I think she would like that."  
  
"Good, I'll talk to her tomorrow at work. We missed you at dinner this evening. Is everything okay?" asked Bulma.  
  
"Yeah, everything is fine."  
  
"What happened to your shirt?"  
  
Vegeta tried not to be too obvious but could not hold back a slight chuckle.  
  
"This kitchen is really hot and I took it off. Is the air conditioning working properly?" Trunks replied, hoping this would appease her curiosity.  
  
Vegeta straightened up in his chair. "The boy is right," he agreed, then slipped his shirt off as well. "It is rather warm in here."  
  
Bulma gaze went from father to son, completely puzzled by their behavior. She shrugged her shoulders. "I'll have it checked out tomorrow."  
  
Relieved and thankful that his father covered for him, Trunks slowly let out the breath he had been holding in.

----------  
Author's note: This was my favorite chapter to write so far. Thank you so much to all who have reviewed! It really means a lot to me!!


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9  
  
_**Everything Alanis Morisette**  
  
You see everything  
  
You see every part _

_You see all my light _

_And you love my dark _

_You dig everything _

_Of which I'm ashamed _

_There's not anything to which you can't relate And your still here_  
  
That night, Trunks actually slept without any problem. He felt exhausted by the time he got to his bed because the day had been such an emotional roller coaster. When his alarm went off, his first thought was of Miyuki and what they had shared the day before. He didn't really feel any different, but he was different. He got ready for work in a complete fog, thinking only of what he experienced and how good it felt. When he arrived at the breakfast table, his mom already had his coffee poured. She handed it to him and he mindlessly took it from her as he sat down at the table. He stretched and yawned and then stared into his coffee cup, a slight smile across his face. Bra stuck her tongue out at him when he sat down but even that didn't faze him. He just smiled back at his little sister and gazed around the room with a far off look in his eyes.  
  
Bulma placed a plate in front of him, but he hardly noticed. "Trunks?" she asked. "Are you all right this morning?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine, Mom," he said as he gazed down at his plate and automatically started eating. Coming slowly out of his fog, he realized Vegeta was not planted in his usual chair reading the paper. "Where's Father?"  
  
Bulma's face lit up at the mention of his name. She quickly turned away from her son to hide her giddiness from him. "He is still in bed, I think," she replied, trying not to sound too obvious.  
  
"Hm, that's not like him. Is he sick or something?"  
  
"He's just fine. Now eat your breakfast before you are late."  
  
Trunks noticed his mother was making a tray that he assumed she was taking up to Vegeta. He then noticed that she wasn't dressed for work. "Aren't you going to the office?" asked Trunks.  
  
Bulma was visibly tense when she answered her son. "I am going in late today. Clean up down here for me, will you, honey?" she said and scurried out of the room with the tray for her mate.  
  
Trunks watched his mother leave the room and then looked over at his sister. Bra answered him by shrugging her shoulders and continuing to eat her cereal. She started humming a silly tune between bites, but that didn't bother Trunks. He loved everyone and everything this day—his first day as a real man.  
  
He returned to his contented daze and ate his breakfast. He wondered if it was too early to call Miyuki because he really wanted to talk to her. After a little while, he felt something poking him in the arm. His sister was jabbing him with her spoon to get his attention. "I'm done," she announced.  
  
"So get your little piglet butt out of the chair and take your bowl over to the sink," he told her as he made a mean face.  
  
"Don't call me that! I'm telling!" she wailed. "Besides, Mommy said you were supposed to clean up."  
  
"Yeah, but she didn't say I was supposed to clean up after you," he said and ruffled her hair, which was another thing she hated for him to do.  
  
Bra in turn smacked him on the arm and stuck her tongue out at him. "You are so mean!"  
  
"Just put your bowl in the sink and I'll put a video on for you," he said to her in a softer tone. Trunks figured it would be a good idea to let his parents be alone together for a while. It also meant that Bulma wouldn't be going in to work any time soon and Miyuki wouldn't have to face her.  
  
Goten showed up at the door to the kitchen and let himself in. "Hi, I'm here!" he called out.  
  
Bra's eyes lit up when he came in. "Hi, Goten!" she said, smiling brightly at him.  
  
Goten rolled his eyes. Bra had recently started being really nice to him and he figured she had some sort of crush on him. "Hey, piglet," he said.  
  
Oddly, Bra didn't get mad when Goten called her that. "Do you want to watch a video with me, Goten?"  
  
"No, thanks. I am going to work with Trunks here."  
  
Bra gave him a little, disappointed pout. Trunks took her into the other room and put a video on for her, before he and Goten went out the back door to work.  
  
-----  
  
As soon as he completed his interview with HR, Goten showed up about an hour after Trunks to start his new job on the dock. Kwang had all the guys cleaning because that's what they did when there were no immediate orders to fill. Some of the workers had been sent to the factory to help out over there. When lunchtime came around, Trunks showed Goten where the cafeteria was. After they got their food and sat down at a table, a curious Goten looked around. As he scanned the room, a lovely woman caught his eye. "Trunks, look at that girl. Do you know her?"  
  
Trunks turned in his chair to look at the girl who was standing at the register and paying for her lunch. "Oh, her? Yeah, I know her," he said with a smile on his face. He stood up and waved her over. She smiled when she saw him waving and approached their table. Remembering his manners, Goten quickly stood up when she arrived. "Goten, I'd like you to meet Miyuki," Trunks said smiling broadly at her.  
  
She couldn't help but smile back. "I guess we can eat together since our relationship was in the paper yesterday," she said with a hint of sarcasm. "Nice to meet you, Goten."  
  
"The pleasure is all mine," he answered and bowed to her.  
  
Miyuki sat down and the boys followed. "Did you talk to my mom?" asked Trunks.  
  
"She never made it in. I hope she isn't still upset about yesterday."  
  
"Um...I think she and my father had a late night last night," said Trunks with a grin.  
  
"Too much information!" groaned Goten.  
  
Miyuki smiled and looked down at her plate.  
  
"Oh, I wanted to tell you two that my mom wants to have dinner with all of us. She asked me about it last night. You can bring Sayuri if you want. It will be a chance for you to get to know my father and sister. What do you think?" he asked, looking expectantly at Miyuki.  
  
Miyuki returned his glance. "I guess I could do that," she replied. "Although, I don't know if Sayuri will come. She isn't really into social things. I'll be sure to ask her, though."  
  
"I'm always up for dinner," said Goten. "When?"  
  
"She didn't say, but I'll let you know when I talk to her." Trunks looked over at the remainder of food on Miyuki's tray. "Are you going to eat that cookie?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, I am going to eat that cookie! Keep your hands off!" she said with a glare in her eyes.  
  
After a few minutes of idle conversation and getting to know each other, Goten soon excused himself, figuring out that the pair wanted to be alone for a little while.  
  
"Can I see you tonight?" asked Trunks, once Goten had left the room.  
  
"I can't tonight," replied Miyuki.  
  
"Can I ask why?" asked Trunks, a little annoyed that she didn't offer him an explanation.  
  
"I have aerobics right after work and then Sayuri and I have plans," she stated. She looked at him and read the disappointment on his face. "I'm sorry," she apologized, placing her palm against his cheek. "I'm not busy tomorrow. Do you mind waiting till then?"  
  
He wanted to spend every waking moment with her, but he knew that wasn't possible. "I guess I can wait, but only if you give me your cookie," he finally said with a grin. Laughing, she handed it over to him.  
  
After Miyuki finished eating, Trunks walked her back to the lab. Bulma was waiting for them when they got there, so he took his leave of them so the two women could talk alone. Bulma asked Miyuki to come to her office and closed the door behind her before taking her seat. "Miyuki, I wanted to talk to you. Like I told you before, I always wanted you and Trunks to get together. I confess that it was a secret hope of mine. And, I am aware that you are interested in the position opening in North America when the CEO there leaves. I can't help wondering if you have discussed this situation with my son?"  
  
Miyuki took a deep breath before answering. "Yes, Bulma, he knows about it. He isn't really happy about it, but I have to be a realist. After all he is only eighteen and I am twenty-three, and I did most of my "growing-up" during that time span. You can rest assured that I have no intention of holding him back from anything you have planned for him, if that is what you are asking."  
  
"No, that is not what I am asking. But, I did see the way he was looking at you in my office, and I must be certain about how things stand between you. The question that remains is this: how badly do you want this promotion, Miyuki?"  
  
Miyuki looked Bulma right in the eyes and stated firmly, "I want it more than anything. I want the chance to show you that I can make the North American business as successful as the one here. You know that I can do it, Bulma," she replied with pride.  
  
"Yes, I do know that you would be a great asset to them, and to the company, but what about yourself? Is it really what you want to do? Speaking for myself, I would miss you terribly, as I know Trunks would. This would require a huge commitment on your part. You know that don't you?"  
  
"Yes, and I am ready and willing to make that commitment to you and to Capsule Corp." Miyuki stated, a little stronger this time. "You have done so much to help me. I would like the chance to give back to you."  
  
"I need to make a decision about this in the next week or so. Update your resume and fill out a transfer request, then bring the completed documents to me. Miyuki, you realize my son may never forgive me if I grant you this transfer," Bulma said, looking at her employee out of the corner of her eye.  
  
"I don't want to hurt him, I really don't. Like I said, I don't want to ever hold him back either. Surely he isn't going to be working on the loading dock for the rest of his life. He is way too smart for that."  
  
"No, it is my hope that my son will be taking over Capsule Corp. when he gets done with college," said Bulma, leaning back in her chair. She thought for a minute and then changed the subject. "Oh, by the way, I would like to invite you to dinner with my family. I also plan to have a few select members of the press there to take pictures of us all together. I want it made clear to everyone that I approve of this relationship, so that we can put to rest all the tabloid stories about how much I hate you. What night is good for you?"  
  
"Any night but aerobics night," she answered and they both laughed. Once they agreed on an evening, Miyuki left Bulma's office feeling as if a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Keeping her relationship with Trunks a secret had been more draining on her than she thought, but now that it was out in the open, she could rest easy.  
  
Trunks joined his parents and sister for dinner that evening although his mind was elsewhere during the meal. He started to feel strange about the way Miyuki had acted when he asked if they could see each other this evening. His irrational fears began to mount as he slowly talked himself into feeling like she was hiding something from him. After dinner he decided that he had to find out what she was doing and flew to her apartment, hiding in the shadows so that he couldn't be seen. He peered out of the darkness to see Miyuki and Sayuri leaving their apartments and walking down the street. They were chatting and smoking cigarettes, which didn't seem out of the ordinary. Trunks followed them, staying just far enough behind that he wouldn't be noticed.  
  
The two women continued walking quite a distance, until they came upon a small building. Outside the building was a group of others, standing around talking and smoking. He watched as they walked up to the group and began hugging several of the members, both male and female. Trunks hung back and surveyed his surroundings and realized that this was one of the neighborhoods that his mother told him never to go to. "Why is she here?" he asked himself. Pretty soon, the group of people went into the building. When he was sure no one was left outside, Trunks crept up to the building, close enough to listen to what was going on inside. One by one, he heard people in the room taking turns, talking about their problems and voices of the others trying to help them. When Trunks thought he'd heard enough to satisfy his curiosity, he started to walk away, but he froze when the next person began to speak.  
  
"Hi, my name is Miyuki, and I am an addict," said the familiar female voice. "As of today, I have two years, and thirty days clean. The topic I would like to discuss is relationships after sobriety and how others have dealt with all the issues that come up," she added.  
  
So, this was what she didn't want to tell him, her secret. Ashamed that he'd doubted her, Trunks felt an enormous amount of guilt flooding over him. He quickly walked away from the open window and up the street, far from the building where the meeting was being held. "Why couldn't I have just trusted her?" he scolded himself. Was this tendency to be suspicious and possessive built into his Saiyan psyche, or was it his human side that made him that way? He walked on for a while, until he found himself back at Miyuki's apartment building where he sat on her steps and decided to wait for her. He felt torn inside, wanting to tell her how sorry he was for doubting her; but he was fearful that if he did that, he would also have to admit that he had been spying on her. Once she found out, would she ever trust him again?  
  
He waited for what seemed like an eternity, for Miyuki to return. Before he saw them he heard her and her neighbor's laughing voices coming up the sidewalk and he stood at the bottom of her stairs, waiting. The moment she saw him, her face lit up and she ran to hug him. She buried her face in his chest as her arms encircled his torso. Grinning, Sayuri made her way around the embracing pair and up the stairs. "I suppose this means that you aren't going to invite me in," she said as she disappeared into her apartment.  
  
Miyuki pulled away from Trunks and looked up at him. "Hi," she whispered.  
  
"Hi," whispered Trunks back to her. "I missed you. I hope you aren't upset that I am here."  
  
She gave him a mock-angry look and said, "Yes, I am very upset with you! I am afraid I will have to punish you. Come up to my room for your reprimand," she added, now with a seductive look in her eyes. She grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled him up the stairs to her apartment. Once inside, she dropped her purse in its spot, and turned to face him, noticing that he had a serious expression on his face. "Is there something wrong?" she asked.  
  
Trunks took her hands in his and looked into her shining blue eyes. So many thoughts were speeding across his brain, that he couldn't find the exact words he wanted to say to her. While he was gazing at her, she smiled at him and, with her fingertips, lightly traced the outline of his lips. Trunks shut his eyes and savored the touch of her fingers. When he opened his eyes, she took his other hand and led him to her bedroom. Guiding him over to the bed she gently pushed him down into a seating position. She then lifted herself onto his lap and wrapped her legs and arms around him, kissing his lips at the same time.  
  
Trunks responded by wrapping his arms around her and returning her kiss with equal enthusiasm. After a few moments of passionate kissing, Trunks pulled away from her and looked at her. "Did you think I just came over here for sex?" he asked with a smirk on his face.  
  
Miyuki nodded her head and started licking his earlobe.  
  
"Okay, then. I just wanted to get that straight," he said pulling her down and rolling her over so that he was on top. Just as they began kissing and removing clothing, Trunks stopped her again. "Before we go any further, I have to ask you something."  
  
Miyuki had a look of frustration on her face. "You talk way too much," she said as she continued undressing him and herself.  
  
"Really, I am being serious now," he said trying not to smile. "I have to ask you if I need to...protect myself from--"  
  
Miyuki cut him off. "I know what you are getting at, and no, you don't have to worry, I am on the pill! Now shut up!" she uttered and covered his mouth with her own.  
  
Their lovemaking lasted much longer this time as they explored each other's bodies with their hands and their tongues. Neither thought it possible for it to feel any more breathtaking than the previous evening, but this time together surpassed it for both of them.  
  
They lay on the bed together in silence, enjoying the after-glow sensation in their bodies. Miyuki was the first to stir, rising from the bed to go into the other room to get her pack of cigarettes. She returned, lit one and climbed back in bed, sitting up against the headboard. Trunks rolled to face her and rested his head on his hand. After a few drags, she looked at him and asked, "Why were you here waiting for me?"  
  
The relaxed smile on Trunks' face disappeared. He wasn't sure how honest he should be with her, but he didn't want to keep anything from her either. "I was disappointed when you said you were too busy to see me," he finally said.  
  
"Aren't you going to ask me where I was?" she asked.  
  
"Only if you want to tell me," he replied.  
  
Miyuki pondered what her answer would be. She had never had a reason to be less than truthful with him, but since they were now lovers, their relationship had reached a new level. She flicked some ashes into her ashtray and took a long drag on her cigarette before answering him. "What I am about to tell you, must not go past this room. If I find out you repeated it to anyone, I will never forgive you," she said with grave sincerity.  
  
"I promise," avowed Trunks.  
  
Miyuki took a deep breath and began her story, "When I was in college, it was hard for me to keep up with my classes, work and juggle everything all at once, so I started using drugs to stay awake. Well, even before that, I drank pretty heavily, but it wasn't until I started using drugs that my downward spiral really got worse." She stopped and looked at Trunks. He appeared to be listening intently to what she was saying, so she continued. "I did a lot of things that I am ashamed of during that time in my life, Trunks. I kept promising myself that once I got through my next exam, I would stop using, but then another exam would come up, and I kept putting off quitting. Sayuri was my using buddy. The two of us shared an apartment in a different part of town. People were at our place all the time buying and selling and anything else you could imagine. I also had a string of abusive relationships during this time, based solely on what I could get from the guy for sex. I really hated myself. I wanted to die." Miyuki paused again remembering the pain that she felt that time in her life.  
  
"I'm sorry," uttered Trunks.  
  
She looked over at him for a second or two and continued with her story. "Anyway, one night when I was really messed up, my boyfriend at the time decided to use my face as a punching bag. I ended up in the hospital and one of the doctors told me if I didn't stop what I was doing I was going to die. Of course, I didn't care because I wanted to die. While I was in the hospital, Sayuri moved out of our apartment to this place. She also started going to spiritual meetings. I hated her for leaving me," Miyuki paused and lit another cigarette. The memories of that time in her life were one of the main reasons she smoked. "So, I was about to get evicted from our old apartment because I hadn't paid the rent since she left, and she said I could come and stay with her if I cleaned up. She made me go to meetings with her, but I only did it to have a place to stay. Surprisingly, I felt good after my first meeting. By then, I had already dropped all my classes for that quarter because I knew I was failing them, so with all the free time on my hands, I went to meetings, sometimes three a day. I learned that most of the people there had done a lot of terrible things, many of them similar to what I had done, and some had done much worse, but they all accepted me and loved me for exactly who I was," Gulping, Miyuki could feel tears forming in her eyes. She took a quick puff of her cigarette, waiting for the emotion to pass. "I haven't used since then. After a lot of emotional and physical pain, I got my shit together and got back on track. I was close to getting fired from Capsule Corp. too, but managed to get back on track where that was concerned. I got this apartment across from Sayuri when it opened up and here I am.  
  
"If you want to run away now, feel free," she said as a sad chuckle came out of her mouth.  
  
Trunks put his hand on her cheek and turned her head to face him. "I told you that no matter what, my feelings for you would never change. You can't get rid of me."  
  
Miyuki stubbed out her cigarette and slid down on the bed so that they were facing each other. "You mean I am stuck with you?" she whispered.  
  
He nodded and leaned forward to kiss her brow. His lips lingered there for a few seconds as he summoned the courage to confess what he had done. "I have something to tell you, too," he said as he pulled back to face her.  
  
"Okay, spit it out," she retorted as she poked him in the chest.  
  
"I followed you to your meeting tonight."  
  
"What?" Miyuki was astonished. "Why did you do that?"  
  
"I don't know. I felt like you were keeping something from me, and I guess I was afraid or jealous or...I don't know. I am so sorry." Trunks was so ashamed of his earlier actions now that he knew his suspicions were unfounded. He looked at her with a small grin. "Are you going to punish me again?"  
  
She smiled her biggest smile and playfully smacked him across the shoulder. Then her expression turned serious again. "When you asked me yesterday about it being my first time, in a way it truly was. I haven't been with anyone since I got clean. So, you see, it really it was my first time sober, and it was much more enjoyable with you."  
  
As Trunks held her tightly, Miyuki felt such a huge sense of relief that she had told him her story. She had nothing to hide from him now on and it felt so good.

Author's note: This was a really serious chapter after the last one. I hope I wasn't too over the top. I wanted to make Miyuki and addict because I wanted to write about someone who overcame an addiction. Some people very close to me are addicts in recovery and I myself attend Al-Anon meetings on a regular basis. Al-Anon saved my life!  
  
If you have read my story to this point and have not reviewed, please review! Even if it is one word, I don't care. I so appreciate each and every review, you have no idea! 


	10. Chapter 10 The family dinner

Chapter 10 – The Family Dinner  
  
Bulma made the reservations for the Briefs family's favorite elegant restaurant. She made sure everyone who was invited, knew exactly what to wear and what time to be there. "You can plan the plans," Bulma said to herself as she twirled around in her office chair to look out the window, "but you can't plan the outcome." The dinner party actually served two purposes. The first was for Miyuki to get to know the family and to be photographed with her for the press; the second was to welcome Bulma's mom and dad back from their extended vacation. Her father was certainly taking advantage of his retirement by whisking her mom off to exotic locations just about every month. "I need a cigarette," Bulma sighed in exasperation. Officially, she didn't smoke anymore, as far as her doctor knew. Unofficially, she had one every once in a while, but she never bought her own so it didn't count.  
  
As the evening drew near, Miyuki had rummaged through her closet ten times trying to find the perfect outfit. "Nothing! There is nothing to wear! I can't go. I will just call Trunks and tell him I can't go," she said out loud in frustration.  
  
"What do you mean you can't go? Don't you feel well?" asked Trunks, concern in his voice.  
  
"Besides the fact that I may throw up any minute and I don't have anything to wear, I am just peachy!" she shouted into the phone.  
  
"I'll be right over," he replied and before she could protest, he hung up the phone.  
  
"Great! He is the last person I want to see right now!" she wailed before flopping down on her couch lighting up a cigarette.  
  
Five minutes later, Trunks showed up and knocked at her door. She opened it and let him in. He was wearing a cream-colored dress shirt and khaki slacks. He also wore a tie. "You are wearing a tie?" questioned Miyuki. "I thought this gathering was supposed to be casual. Now I really can't go!" she whined and walked away from him.  
  
"Here, I'll take it off. You can wear it," he said as he loosened and slipped it over his head. He walked up behind her and turned her around. He then placed the tie over her head and tightened it around her neck. "It looks perfect."  
  
Annoyed, she crossed her arms and gave him a disgusted look.  
  
"Oh wait, I know what's wrong." He gently uncrossed her arms and removed her shirt. The tie fell delicately between her breasts. "Yes, I think that has to be my favorite outfit," he said and smiled at her.  
  
She couldn't help but smile back at him, and then smacked him on the shoulder. "This isn't helping!" she declared as she crossed the room and picked up her cigarettes. She took another one out of the pack and lit it. "You have no idea how nervous I am," she said softly with her back to him.  
  
Trunks walked up behind her and placed his hands on her bare shoulders gently rubbing the tension out of them. "Miyuki, you are dazzling no matter what you are wearing."  
  
Miyuki turned to face him. He is so sweet, she thought. Never before had anyone called her "dazzling." She put her cigarette in the ashtray, and slid her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. After a few moments she slowly pulled away from him and looked him in the eyes. "If I'm not wearing a shirt, then neither are you," she stated as she began unbuttoning his dress shirt.  
  
"Sounds fair to me," he replied un-tucking his shirt from his waistband. He undid his belt as well. "Do you want my pants off, too?" he asked.  
  
She nodded her head and pulled his zipper open, which caused his pants to fall to the ground. He stepped out of them along with his shoes. She again slid her arms around his waist. "I am not sure the press is going to like our outfits," said Miyuki as she brought her lips closer to his.  
  
"Fuck the press," he whispered huskily as their lips came together. They continued kissing until Trunks pulled his lips away and placed them on her neck. For some reason that he couldn't explain, he kept being drawn to her neck area. He had an overwhelming urge to bite it.  
  
Miyuki's eyes were closed. She slowly opened them and, with a dreamy look, smiled. "We are going to be late," she murmured to him.  
  
He smiled and picked her up, whisking her away to the bedroom at an exceptionally fast speed.  
  
As he laid her softly down on her bed, a loud clap of thunder roared across the sky. He gently removed the rest of her clothing and lay down next to her. With nothing but his tie left between them, they made passionate love to each other. Lightning flashed and thunder roared outside her bedroom as the pair shared their most incredible climax to date. Again, as their bodies were intertwined, Trunks had an incredible urge to bite her neck. It puzzled him to no end. He made a mental note to ask someone if the same thing had happened to them.  
  
When they were done, Miyuki quickly remembered her predicament of having nothing to wear and rushed out of bed to get herself together. "Get up! We are going to be so late!" she said frantically.  
  
"Mmmmm, come back to bed," said Trunks, a very relaxed and sexy smile on his face. She ran to the living room, gathered up his discarded clothes, took off his tie, and threw the garments at him. "Get up! We should have been at the restaurant ten minutes ago!"  
  
"Crap! Is it that late?" said Trunks with a look of shock on his face.  
  
Miyuki went in the bathroom and started hurriedly brushing her teeth. At that moment the doorbell rang. Miyuki ran over to answer the door in her bathrobe, toothbrush hanging from her mouth.  
  
"Oh, I see you are all ready to go," mocked Sayuri, looking at her friend's attire.  
  
"I don't have anything to wear," complained Miyuki barely understandable with the toothpaste dripping from her mouth. She walked over to her kitchen sink and spit.  
  
"Weren't we supposed to be there ten minutes ago?" asked Sayuri.  
  
"Yes, but like I said, I can't find anything to wear."  
  
"Maybe I have something. Let me look. You do know it is pouring like crazy outside, don't you?"  
  
"Damn, I'm not sure I have a hardtop capsule." Miyuki emptied out her purse and found a convertible capsule and a scooter capsule, but no vehicle that could get them to the restaurant without getting soaked.  
  
At this point Trunks strolled into the living room, all dressed and putting the finishing touches on his tie. "What's going on?" he asked.  
  
"More drama," answered Sayuri. "It is pouring down rain and we don't have a way to get to the restaurant without getting soaked."  
  
"Do you have a capsule car on you?" asked Miyuki, looking hopefully at Trunks.  
  
"Um, no. I flew here. But fear not, ladies. I happen to know the owner of Capsule Corporation personally. I will give her a call." Trunks announced as he got out his phone. He speed-dialed his mom's personal number. "Hi, mom."  
  
"TRUNKS! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!" bellowed the voice at the other end of the line.  
  
Trunks was so startled by his mother's tone, that he juggled and almost dropped the phone. The two girls giggled as they watched his face turn red. "Mom..."  
  
"Everyone is here waiting for you, and you aren't here. This dinner was supposed to be for you!" shouted Bulma.  
  
"Mom..." said Trunks a little louder, trying to get a word in edgewise.  
  
"Your grandmother and grandfather made a special trip to see you. You know it is hard for your grandfather to get around these days!"  
  
"MOM!" shouted Trunks with more urgency.  
  
"All of the Sons are here, including Gohan, Videl, and Pan. I am not sure how much longer I can hold off all these hungry Saiyans!"  
  
"MOM! Listen! It's pouring down rain and we don't have a proper car capsule to get there. All we have on hand is a scooter and convertible," said Trunks, managing to finally get his mother to listen to him.  
  
"Oh, well! Why didn't you say so? I will send your father over to get you. Here he is. Give him directions." From his end, Trunks could hear Bulma handing the phone to Vegeta.  
  
At the restaurant, Vegeta raised a black eyebrow at his wife as she placed the device into his hand. "Hello," he said into the speaker. Vegeta hated dealing with cell phones. In fact, he avoided dealing with most technology whenever possible.  
  
Trunks gave Vegeta directions and he, being the arrogant Saiyan that he was, didn't bother writing anything down. He handed the phone back to Bulma when he was done and got up to leave.  
  
"Where ya going Vegeta?" asked his least favorite person in the world, Goku.  
  
"Not that it should matter to you, but I am going to pick up the boy and his woman to bring them here. It is raining and they don't have a way to get here," stated Vegeta.  
  
"Can I come?" asked Goku in his ever-cheery tone that annoyed Vegeta to no end. Goku was hungry and wanted to do something to take his mind off waiting for the food to be served.  
  
"Certainly not!" exclaimed Vegeta.  
  
"Please, Vegeta?" pleaded Goku.  
  
"Oh, let him go with you. Goku can help you find it," said Bulma knowing that her mate was not as good at finding places in a car as he was in the air.  
  
Vegeta gave his wife a disgusted look and started to leave.  
  
"So, can I go?" asked Goku, looking hopefully at Bulma.  
  
Bulma rolled her eyes and motioned for him to follow Vegeta, so he did. The tow emerged from the restaurant to find that it was raining cats and dogs. Vegeta activated the car capsule and they both climbed into the vehicle as quickly as possible. "I'm warning you. You'd better keep your mouth shut, Kakarott."  
  
"Okay," agreed Goku.  
  
Back at Miyuki's apartment, Sayuri found her a lovely skirt with a matching sleeveless blouse to wear.  
  
"Didn't I tell you I would find something for you?" asked Sayuri, pleased with her selection.  
  
Miyuki put the clothes on and looked dazzling, just like Trunks knew she would. She quickly fixed her hair and touched up her make-up and managed to be ready when Vegeta and Goku arrived. Luckily for her, the fact that they had gotten a little lost had given Miyuki a little extra time to make herself beautiful.  
  
Trunks was shocked to see Goku walk in with his father. He recovered from his surprise to introduce Goku to the two ladies and they all headed for the car. He had a very bad feeling about this particular combination of Saiyans. "Father?" ventured Trunks. "Are you sure you don't want me to drive?"  
  
"I can drive, boy! I found this place didn't I? Do you also think I am a bad driver?" he responded, venom in his eyes as he looked at his son.  
  
"No! Not at all! I was just offering to help! You go right ahead and drive," said Trunks nervously, trying to sound more positive than he felt. Trunks sat back in his seat with Miyuki and Sayuri on either side of him. Miyuki took his hand. She was growing a little nervous herself.  
  
Vegeta started the car and began to drive. "You might want to turn on the windshield wipers," suggested Goku, pointing to a button on the dashboard.  
  
"I was just about to do that, Kakarott!"  
  
"Okay, I am just saying..."  
  
"Don't say another word or I swear I will kill you!" barked the Prince of all Saiyans.  
  
Goku sat back in his seat trying very hard to keep his mouth shut, but he was certain Vegeta was going the wrong way and they were getting lost again. Trunks and the ladies also knew he was going the wrong way, but were too terrified to mention it.  
  
Suddenly, Goku looked back at Trunks and winked. Turning toward their driver, Goku declared, "Vegeta, I know you want to kill me and all, but I really think you should have made a right turn instead of a left turn at that corner back there."  
  
Vegeta angrily slammed on the brakes and stopped the car right in the middle of an intersection. At this point, he had definitely had enough of his least favorite Saiyan at that point. He jumped out of the car and stormed over to the passenger side. He ripped the door off its hinges and grabbed Goku, yanking him out of the car. "Sorry, Trunks," said Goku as he was dragged out of the car.  
  
"Oh shit!" swore Trunks under his breath as he watched the two men pound each other mercilessly.  
  
As they were fighting, the three in the back seat had no idea what to do. "It's all right really! They do this all the time," explained Trunks with a nervous smile on his face. He was trying to make out exactly where the fighters were in relation to the car, but the pounding rain on the car windows kept obscuring his view. Raindrops were starting to blow in where the front passenger side door used to be. He saw the two Saiyans rising slowly into the air as they continued to throw punches in each other's direction. Then, he saw his father deliver a huge punch, which sent Goku plummeting directly towards their car.  
  
"Oh, SHIT!" said Trunks, a lot louder this time as soon as he saw which direction Goku was heading. He quickly blasted open the door nearest to Sayuri, and grabbed the two ladies, hurling himself and them out of the car, just before Goku's falling body made contact, smashing the car to smithereens. Unfortunately, he did not have a very good grip on Miyuki and accidentally dropped her right in a puddle of mud that had formed in the street.  
  
A wet and horrified Miyuki sat up in the puddle. Vegeta had flown to where the recovered Goku had landed and they began punching each other again. Trunks gently put Sayuri down beneath a nearby building's overhang and ran over to where Miyuki had landed. He helped her get up and Miyuki surveyed the damage to her outfit. She was covered with mud and completely soaked with rainwater. A strangled noise somewhere between a scram and a sob, escaped her mouth. At the mournful sound, Vegeta and Goku stopped pounding each other and looked over at her. Her long, curly hair, that she has so carefully put together, was now just a wet, tangled mess clinging to her face and body. Realizing the big mistake he had just made, although he would never admit that to anyone, Vegeta released his grip on Goku's torn shirt. He splashed over to a sobbing and moaning Miyuki, who was fumbling about her soaked purse to see if anything could be saved. "My cigarettes are all wet," she whined as she pulled them out, one by one.  
  
Vegeta took a deep breath to further calm himself down. His mate was already angry with the boy. He had to get them to this dinner she'd planned or else she would be angry with him, as well. He already figured he would be sleeping on the couch over this incident for at least a couple of nights. He didn't particularly enjoy listening to the women's strident bitching when she was mad, although he did relish their passionate make-up sessions. Taking matters into his own hands, Vegeta took the sodden pack of cigarettes from her and forcefully picked her up and flung her over his shoulder. He strode over to a nearby carryout, which was situated on the corner where they had stopped and went in. "Give me a pack of these," he demanded, slamming the soggy pack of cigarettes on the counter in front of the very startled cashier. Trunks, Sayuri, and Goku had followed right behind Vegeta and his surprised passenger into the carryout.  
  
Since she was upside-down over Vegeta's shoulder with her hair matted down into her face, Miyuki was unable to see what was going on. To make matter worse, she couldn't stop crying. Vegeta snatched the offered pack of dry cigarettes and started to leave.  
  
"Mister, you didn't pay for that!" protested the attendant.  
  
"I'll take care of it," said Trunks as he ran over to the counter and paid for the cigarettes.  
  
"You," shouted Vegeta, pointing towards Goku. "Grab the other girl and let's get them to the restaurant before the woman completely flips out."  
  
Happy to comply, Goku did as he was commanded and picked up Sayuri. For a second, he thought about mentioning his instant transmission ability, but decided against it, not wanting to make Vegeta any angrier with him by doing something he couldn't do.  
  
"Come on boy!" Vegeta shouted, this time to Trunks. Knowing better than to argue with his father, Trunks took flight behind him and Goku as the three of them flew to the restaurant. Not knowing anything about the men's Saiyan heritage, Sayuri had no idea what was going on and just held on as best she could. Up to this point, things had gotten so crazy that nothing surprised her.  
  
A few minutes later the soggy quintet arrived at the resteraunt. As soon as they walked into the entrance, Vegeta carefully put Miyuki down. She had eventually stopped her sobbing, but thanks to the rain and mud that covered her, was quite unrecognizable. A dripping Trunks was standing directly behind them as an equally wet Goku stood with Sayuri still in his arms. Members of the press, which had been milling about and eagerly awaiting their arrival, started snapping picture after picture in anticipation of scooping each other to tomorrow's headlines.  
  
After shoving aside a few of the photographers blocking her way, a breathless Bulma came running up to them. She stopped, her mouth dropping as she took in the scene that met her shocked blue eyes. After a few moments of awkward silence, punctuated solely by the sounds of popping flashbulbs all around, Bulma expelled a huge sigh. "I need a cigarette," she said to no one in particular, holding her hand out.  
  
Wordlessly, Vegeta handed her the pack of cigarettes.

* * *

Authors note: Any ideas on what the headlines might read? Let me know in a review.  
  
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of those who have helped me and reviewed my story:  
  
Cauli – you have been such a big help! I don't know what I would do without you.  
  
Hollyberry – You have also been a huge help. This story reads so much more fluent than my last one because of your beta.  
  
Elenek, ccfleurdelys, Blue Siren, Debbiechan, Phantomscribe72, and MelizaMac – you guys rock! I so appreciate your honest feedback!  
  
Gazthewinner – Thanks for reviewing every chapter! Looking forward to helping you out too!  
  
Caljay123, skyeatreides, mystixstarz-2005 – Thanks for your reviews. They are greatly appreciated.  
  
If I forgot anyone, it doesn't mean I didn't appreciate your input, it just means I am a scatterbrain! I had fun writing this chapter. The thing I always loved most about DBZ was the humor. 


	11. Chapter 11 The Announcement

Chapter 11  
  
((telepathic thoughts will be noted this way))  
  
Bulma, Chi-Chi, Videl, and Mrs. Briefs ushered the hungry, wet group into the private room Bulma had reserved. Miyuki and her outfit were beyond help, so Bulma made the decision that they would get the food "to go" and go back to Capsule Corp. She asked Goku to use his instant transmission to whisk everyone back to the Briefs family home. Everyone, that is, except Vegeta who insisted upon getting home by himself.  
  
Trunks led the sobbing Miyuki up to his room so that she could clean up. She went in his bathroom and slammed the door on him so that he couldn't watch her. "Aw come on, it's not like I haven't seen it all before," he teasingly said into the door.  
  
"Go away!" yelled Miyuki. Trunks chuckled at her sudden shyness. He walked back toward his bed and started to remove his own soaked clothing.  
  
In the meantime, Bulma showed Sayuri the guest quarters and found some clothes of her own that her wet guest could change into. Goku simply transmitted himself home for a few minutes to dry off and change. When Vegeta finally showed up, he passed directly through the kitchen and went to his room to put on a pair of workout shorts. He was tired of being dressed in the ridiculous clothes that Bulma made him wear to the fancy restaurant. Bra and Pan planted themselves in the living room and began playing with some of Bra's toys. Bra loved it when Pan came over because there was actually someone her own age to play with, even if Pan didn't always like the same things she did. Everyone else gathered in the living room to partake of the carryout food. Goten tried desperately to get Sayuri's attention, but whenever he turned around, Bra was at his heels begging him to play with her. "Looks like you have a friend, there," stated an amused Sayuri when Goten attempted to talk to her.  
  
When at last Miyuki had managed to get the mud out of every orifice and all washed out of her hair, she emerged from the bathroom wrapped in a towel. Her wet hair fell down about her shoulders. Trunks had gotten dressed in sweat pants and a t-shirt. He had laid out a t-shirt of his and a pair of shorts that didn't fit him anymore for her to wear. She went over to his bed and sat down heavily next to him. "I have never been so humiliated in my whole life," she said softly. "And the incident will forever be etched in the archives of the daily news," she continued.  
  
"One day, we will look back at this and laugh," said Trunks, smiling as he handed her the clothes he had picked out for her.  
  
Miyuki glared at him, anger written all over her face. "That is not funny," she said as her eyes formed small slits. She forcefully grabbed the clothes from him and stomped back into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.  
  
"Why are you so mad at me?" asked Trunks as he walked toward the bathroom. "My father was the one responsible for all the commotion tonight. He is notorious for causing chaos!"  
  
After a minute or so, Miyuki opened the door. She was wearing the clothes that he had picked out. "I need a comb," she said calmly.  
  
Trunks walked past her into the bathroom and found a comb for her to use. She snatched it from his hand and walked toward the mirror. She began combing out her long hair, which was quite an undertaking after all the scrubbing she had just done. Trunks kept quiet and watched her from the opposite side of the room. After she had combed out most of the tangles and had twisted her hair into two braids, she noticed in the mirror that he was watching her. She turned swiftly to face him. "What are you looking at?" she spat.  
  
"Something dazzling," he replied with a twinkle in his eye.  
  
Her face softened for a second at the compliment, and then went cold again. She huffed and turned her attentions back to the mirror.  
  
"How long are you going to stay mad at me?" Trunks asked softly. He walked closer to stand behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. They looked at each other's reflections in the mirror.  
  
Miyuki breathed a heavy sigh. She turned toward him and pounded her fists a couple of times on his chest in frustration. "How could this happen?"  
  
"Miyuki, don't worry about it. Let's just go downstairs and eat, and I am sure you will feel better."  
  
"Oh, now you are telling me how I am supposed to feel?" she spat back at him.  
  
Trunks was shocked at her angry response. "No, that's not what I meant at all. Please, Miyuki, I don't want to fight with you."  
  
Her facial features softened. She knew deep down that he was only trying to be nice, but it was hard for her to accept his affection when she was so angry. "All right. Let's go," she said reluctantly.  
  
Everyone was happy to see the couple and greeted them when they arrived downstairs. Bulma firmly wrested Miyuki away from her son and guided the younger woman over to where the elder Dr. Briefs was. The two had met before, but had never gotten the opportunity to have a real conversation, to speak of. Bulma valued his opinion and wanted her dad to get a feel for Miyuki's knowledge as to whether he thought she would be a good choice for the North American CEO's job.  
  
From the other side of the crowded room, Trunks caught a glimpse of her speaking to his grandfather. She was smiling and laughing. He felt relieved; it was good to see her smiling again. He saw Goku standing alone in the kitchen blissfully stuffing his face as usual, and decided this would be good chance to get some information from him. "Goku, I have something to ask you."  
  
"Okay, ask away," said Goku through a mouthful of food.  
  
Trunks leaned in close to Goku and asked under his breath, "What can you tell me about Saiyan...mating practices?"  
  
Goku coughed and choked on the food in his mouth. When he managed to catch his breath, he replied, "Shouldn't you be asking Vegeta that question?"  
  
"No way! I can't talk about that with my father!" Trunks shuddered at the thought.  
  
"Well, he knows more about the Saiyan race than I do. After all, he is the Prince of all Saiyans," said Goku, nodding his head.  
  
"Well can I just ask you one more thing?" whispered Trunks.  
  
"I guess so. I'm not sure how much help I will be."  
  
"Did you ever have the urge to...bite Chi-Chi on the neck?"  
  
"Oh, that Saiyan mating practice," answered Goku, much louder than Trunks would have liked.  
  
"Keep your voice down, Goku!" whispered an embarrassed Trunks. "So, you've had this experience, too?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"What did you do?"  
  
"Well, I tried to ask Vegeta about it a couple of times, but he never really answered me. I am still not sure exactly what it means."  
  
Trunks looked at Goku with a puzzled expression. The young half Saiyan knew that there had to be a meaning behind the strange urge, and apparently the only one who knew anything about it was Vegeta. Trunks groaned at the thought, but there were no other options. It looked like he would have to talk to his father about it.  
  
When Trunks returned to the living room, he discovered Miyuki on the floor with the two little girls playing with their dolls. From the side of the room, he watched her without her knowledge. Bra seemed to like her quite a bit and sat on her lap while they played. His grandmother came up to him and gave him a peck on the cheek. "She is lovely," stated Mrs. Briefs, motioning towards Miyuki.  
  
"Thanks, Grandma," smiled Trunks before kissing her on the cheek as well. Trunks mingled around the room, but always kept an eye on what Miyuki was doing.  
  
One by one, the guests began leaving. Goten insisted on giving Sayuri a ride home, so that left Trunks to take Miyuki home. As they rode toward her home, Miyuki decided that she was feeling much better and she was no longer angry at Trunks. When they arrived at her apartment, Trunks walked her to her door, waiting to come in, but Miyuki protested. "You got it before dinner, so don't expect it after dinner, too," she announced.  
  
He gave her his most engaging smile. "Can't I just come in for a while? I promise to keep my hands to myself."  
  
Miyuki couldn't help but smile back at him. "That's no fun," she said playfully and motioned him in her apartment.  
  
He closed the door behind him and they both flopped down on her couch, exhausted mentally from all the togetherness with his family and friends. "Did you enjoy yourself?" asked Trunks, turning toward Miyuki.  
  
"Aside from the fiasco before dinner, yes I did. Your little sister is cute. I don't know why you hate her so much."  
  
"She gets away with everything. My father treats her so different from how he treated me when I was her age."  
  
"That's not her fault though," observed Miyuki, gazing in his direction as she spoke.  
  
Trunks pondered her last statement. He'd never considered that aspect of it. Miyuki had a real knack for seeing things in ways he had never thought of. He took in a deep breath and returned her gaze. "I guess you are right," he said reluctantly.  
  
They stared at each other for a moment and Miyuki smiled. "It is really getting late. Are you staying with me tonight?" she asked, hoping he would say yes. This night was perfect since neither of them had to work the next day.  
  
Trunks had never spent the whole night with her, although he wanted to. "Are you asking me to spend the night with you?" he inquired softly, his eyes meeting hers with a warm gaze.  
  
She put her head on his shoulder and slid her arms around his waist "I would love to wake up tomorrow in your arms."

* * *

The next day Trunks made it home at around noon. His family was eating lunch when he walked into the kitchen. Vegeta looked out of the corner of his eye at his son, his mouth curled into his trademark smirk.  
  
Trunks met his father's smirking glance and blushed a little at the knowing look before sitting down across from him. "Anything left to eat, Mom?" he asked Bulma.  
  
"Sure, honey," she replied. She quickly made her son a plate and set it down in front of him.  
  
While they were eating, Trunks spoke to his father telepathically. ((Father I need to talk to you in private about something.))  
  
Surprised, Vegeta snapped his head up and looked at his son. It had been a long time since he had wanted to speak with him telepathically. Since Trunks had become a teenager, he valued his privacy and purposefully avoided seeking out his father in this manner. ((What is it?)) he asked.  
  
((It's about...Saiyan...mating. I want you to tell me about it.))  
  
Vegeta opened his eyes even wider at this. ((And why would you be interested in such things?)) he asked, almost embarrassed to be thinking about it.  
  
((I've been feeling some...strange feelings, and don't know what to make of them. I wanted to talk to you about them, but if you are too busy—)) Trunks cut himself off, sorry that he had brought this up. Now, he was so embarrassed and could sense that his father was equally uncomfortable with the subject matter.  
  
"After lunch, when the women aren't around. Follow me to the gravity room," Vegeta said in a low voice.  
  
Trunks nodded once and let out a sigh. He desperately hoped his father could explain some of what he had been feeling lately.  
  
When lunch was over, Trunks put away his dishes and followed his father out of the kitchen. Vegeta remained silent until they got to the gravity room and the door was closed behind them. Turning his face to his anxious son, Vegeta asked softly, "What is it that you want to know?" He, too, was a bit uneasy, but inwardly grateful that his son was asking about his Saiyan heritage.  
  
"Well, I can't explain it. I have this overwhelming urge to...bite Miyuki...on the neck. I know it sounds crazy. I just thought that maybe there was something you could tell me." He nervously searched his father's eyes for some form of understanding.  
  
Vegeta's eyes went to the floor for a moment or two before coming back up to rest on his son's face. "Do you love this woman?" he asked Trunks. His father's question was voiced not in his usual defensive manner, but sounded as if Vegeta genuinely wanted to know what his son was feeling.  
  
"Yes, I love her deeply. I can't imagine my life without her," replied Trunks.  
  
"Then what you are feeling is normal. Saiyan males mark their females by biting them on the neck and swallowing their blood. It forms a bond that can never be broken." As he spoke, he looked directly into Trunks' eyes with great intensity.  
  
"Oh," the younger man said with relief in his tone. The thought of drinking blood sort of nauseated him. "So, I'm not crazy after all?"  
  
Vegeta gave a little amused snort. "No, you are not crazy." His expression became darkly serious before adding, "However, you need to be absolutely certain, that she is your chosen mate for life. Once the bond is made, it can never be broken. There is no such thing as 'divorce' in the Saiyan culture."  
  
"Did you...bond with Mom?" Trunks wasn't sure why he was asking this particular question, but was curious to know what answer his father would give. He had always believed that Vegeta never behaved toward his mother in the same way Trunks thought she should have been treated. But, if the two of them were truly bonded, that meant they had a stronger and deeper connection between them than he imagined they had.  
  
Vegeta looked at his son and shifted uncomfortably a little. He wasn't altogether sure he wanted to answer such a personal question, as he liked to keep this private part of his life to himself. But his son wanted...no needed an answer. He cleared his throat and crossed his arms over his chest. "If I answer that question, would it change how you feel about me?" asked Vegeta. As he was growing up, Trunks had made no secret to his father about how he hadn't cared for the cavalier way in which Vegeta treated his mom.  
  
"Perhaps," Trunks answered, crossing his arms and mirroring his father's stance.  
  
"Yes, I did. I know you believe the only reason I stayed with your mother was out of some obligation to you, but that is not the case. I...love her. She is my life mate. As you said earlier, I can not envision my life without her in it, for I truly cannot 'live' without her."  
  
Trunks slowly nodded, grateful for the understanding that was forming between them. For the next few hours, he continued to ask Vegeta questions about Saiyan customs and history. Vegeta was more than happy to share his knowledge of their Saiyan heritage with Trunks. For his part, this was exactly what Vegeta had always hoped he would share with his offspring.

* * *

Another week passed and the last month of the summer was upon them. Miyuki had filled out the necessary paperwork for her transfer, but with each passing day and the more time she spent with Trunks, the less she wanted to take the job.  
  
The day finally came for Bulma to announce the appointment for the new North American CEO. As Trunks' mother, she was deeply torn, knowing as she did how deeply her son cared for Miyuki and knowing what it was like to love a Saiyan and the passion of which they were capable. She was not entirely sure why Miyuki was so reluctant to make an outright commitment to Trunks. Bulma could tell that there were deeper demons within the girl that she had never shared with her, and she had to respect that. On the other hand, given Miyuki's intelligence and drive, she was the best person for the position to make that division successful.  
  
Bulma was prepared to make her announcement at 1:00 that day. She had assembled all her executives in the boardroom and had cameras there so that it could be simultaneously broadcasted via closed circuit to every area of the company, and web-casted to the North American branch. Earlier that morning, she had made up her mind after wrestling strongly with her choices.  
  
Around the boardroom table sat the usual white lab coats that followed Bulma around, Miyuki included. They were all nervously waiting, eager for the president to make her announcement. When the time came and the cameras were on, Bulma strode up to the podium and arranged her speech cards on its surface before speaking. "Welcome everyone. As you know, the president and Chief Operating Officer of the North American Capsule Corporation branch, Joseph Faloon, has announced his retirement at the end of this month. He has been a great asset to the company and will be sorely missed." Bulma stopped and cleared her throat.  
  
"I have gathered everyone together today to announce his replacement. During these past months, I've carefully gone over many resumes and applications, which were submitted from within Capsule Corporation and those, received form many outside applicants. After much deliberation, I have decided to promote the current vice president, Mitsu Koto, to fill the presidential post." Gasps of surprise were heard throughout as most in the room had fully expected someone from the Eastern side of the globe to get the position. Miyuki took a deep breath, feeling sad and relieved at the same time. She accepted that Bulma knew what was best for the company better than anyone.  
  
Trunks, Goten, and the rest of the dock staff were standing and watching the broadcast on the big screen in the warehouse. Trunks breathed a huge sigh of relief when he heard the news. "Yes!" he whispered a cheer under his breath. His mom had come through for him and was he ever grateful! On the web-cast, Mitsu came up to the podium and thanked Bulma for naming him as the new president. He made a small speech, and when he was done, applause was heard everywhere, especially from Trunks.  
  
When he stepped down, Bulma returned to her place at the podium. She forcefully cleared her throat again to get everyone's attention and the buzz in the room immediately died down. "I made this decision because I felt Mitsu had demonstrated, in my opinion, the best feel for how the market climate in the Western Hemisphere. And, since Mitsu's position will be vacant, I would like to use this forum to announce his replacement for the North American vice-presidential. This was a very tough decision for me to make, since the person whom I feel is most qualified, is also a valued member of my personal staff." Composing herself, Bulma lifted her head and looked straight ahead.  
  
Looking at his mother's resolute face, Trunks felt his heart drop. All of the joy that he had felt a few moments ago, was about to be shattered, as he knew exactly of whom his mother was talking about. He began to feel his knees give out. Goten looked over in alarm at his faltering friend and helped him steady himself. Sadly, he knew what was coming as well.  
  
Bulma took a deep breath, "The new vice-president of the North American Capsule Corporation branch will be Miyuki He."  
  
The cameras all panned over to Miyuki, who had a look of utter surprise on her face. She had, just a moment ago, resigned herself to the fact that she would not be moving. Now, in the space of a few seconds, everything had changed. Miyuki recovered from the momentary shock and came up to the podium. After giving Bulma a handshake and a brief hug, she squared her shoulders, looked into the cameras and began her acceptance speech.  
  
Trunks didn't stay to hear any of her speech. As soon as he heard his mother say Miyuki's name, he broke away from Goten's grasp and began quickly walking off the dock. Goten followed, trying to reason with him and Kwang yelled, threatening to fire him if he didn't come back to work. Trunks didn't hear either one of them. He was hurting and to him, this feeling was worse than any physical pain he had experienced.  
  
Blind to everything and everyone in his path, he continued walking until he came to his house. He went straight into the kitchen and looked in the high cabinet he knew his mother kept bottles of different types of alcohol. Not caring which kind of booze he chose, he grabbed the first bottle he saw and took it up to his room. He sprawled out on his bed, his head reeling, as he tried to piece together what had just occurred. "How could this happen?" he kept repeating as hot stinging tears welled up in his eyes. "How could she cast away everything we have?" 


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

**_You looked so beautiful tonight Reminds me how you laid us down_**

_**And gently smiled**_

_**Before you destroyed my heart**_

**_Would you find it in your heart_**

_**To make this go away**_

_**And let me rest in pieces**_

_**(Rest in Pieces—Saliva)**_

Vegeta trained intensely while Miyuki's promotion was announced on the corner video screen. He stopped abruptly, sensing that something was amiss. He attempted to contact his son telepathically, but Trunks did not want to be bothered.

Trunks drank about half the bottle of what turned out to be rum. He believed that he was going to spend the rest of his life with Miyuki. The painful thought that he would not be able to have her near was something he could not fathom. Slowly, the rum was starting to work its magic and he started to become numb.

Miyuki was excited about her new job. Immediately following the announcement, she, Bulma, and other staff from the North American branch all had a conference call regarding the timeframe for upcoming the transition to the new management. Since the current CEO would be leaving in a month, Miyuki had only two weeks in which to pack up and move and then two weeks in her new home with the current management to ease into her new position. Unfortunately, that also meant that she only had two more weeks to spend with the lavender haired son of her boss. _That_ part of the equation made her uneasy and sad. She could not imagine life without him, but it was better to end the relationship when they were on good terms, because all relationships inevitably ended. She wanted this one to end positively.

A concerned Vegeta made his way into the house and found his son in his bed with an empty bottle of rum dangling from his hand. At first he was taken aback to see his son in this condition, but shock quickly turned into annoyance. "What the hell do you think your doing, boy?" he demanded irritably.

Trunks slowly turned his head to face his father and just stared back at him with contempt. Thanks to the effects of the booze, he was unable to come up with any coherent words to say, so instead he threw the empty bottle at Vegeta.

Vegeta merely leaned to the side a little and easily caught the bottle before it could smash into the wall behind him. He sniffed once at the emptied bottle and glanced down at the label to see what his son had been drinking. "Where did you get this?" he asked, much calmer this time.

As Vegeta watched, Trunks gradually managed to position his uncooperative legs over the side of the bed and prop himself into a sitting position. Then he stood up slowly and swayed a little before coming face-to-face with his father. "First of all, _Father_," he slurred, "my name is _Trunks_. It has always been Trunks, not 'boy.' And secondly," he stopped for a moment struggling to piece the right words together to tell his father what had just happened. "I am done with women!" His arms flew open dramatically. "All women! Women are nothing but trouble! And _you!" _he shouted, weaving where he stood and pointing his finger towards Vegeta, "_You_ should have told me that! You should have told me what it was like to be hurt badly by a woman. What kind of father are you?"

Vegeta's eyes opened wide at the accusation before glaring back at his firstborn. "I suggest that you get your facts straight. Until a short while ago, you never bothered to approach me about women. Hell, I didn't even know you were seeing that girl until your mother read about your little escapade in the paper. This behavior of yours is completely irrational! You want to blame _me_ for everything that goes wrong in your life? Feh!" he snorted. "You can just forget it! I will not take responsibility for you getting hurt by this girl!"

Trunks turned away from his father as hate filled his being and his hands clenched to form fists. In and instant, he turned and punched his father in the stomach, sending him flying through the wall.

Vegeta landed, stunned for a moment, then got up and brushed himself off. He looked at his son and slowly moved toward him. Trunks was already in a fighting stance and breathing heavy. "If you dare start a fight with me, you'd best be prepared to get hurt much worse than you are feeling right now," growled Vegeta in a most menacing tone.

An enraged Trunks, lunged at his father, but Vegeta was ready this time. He struck Trunks with such force that it sent him flying backwards, through his bedroom window, shattering upon impact. Vegeta followed him outside and quickly took a fighting stance.

Once he stopped his spinning from his father's punch, Trunks shook his head hard so that he might rid himself of the fuzziness. The moment he faced his father, his fury returned with a vengeance. Without warning, Trunks turned into a Super Saiyan. Vegeta followed suit, also transforming into a Super Saiyan.

The unusual surge in power immediately caught the attention of the other Saiyans. Goten stopped working and snuck out of the warehouse without Kwang's seeing him. Goku and Gohan both dropped what they were doing to follow the power signals. Even Bra stopped in the middle of her playing to run outside and see what was going on. Bulma was almost done with her conference call, when she got a feeling something was horribly wrong. Looking out of her office window, she could see lights flashing in the distance and knew instantly what was going on. She ended the call abruptly, and with Miyuki following close behind, they ran in the direction of the commotion.

Goten and Bra were the first to arrive, but neither of them had any idea what to do. Bulma and Miyuki showed up next. They were all startled and frightened by the angry intensity of the fight, for this was no friendly sparring match. "Stop it! You are going to kill each other!" screamed Bulma as she watched the two men go after each other. She continued to cry out at them until Goku showed up. "Do something!" she yelled, grabbing the front of his shirt and shaking him.

"Gosh, Bulma. What do you want me to do?" replied Goku scratching the back of his head.

"Break it up!" shrieked Bulma with tears in her eyes. "Vegeta is going to kill him!"

"He wouldn't do that," Goku stated with childlike simplicity.

Bulma groaned and pounded her fists on Goku's chest and then looked up helplessly as the two men she loved more than life itself continued to beat the hell out of each other.

Miyuki just stood there and watched feeling powerless to help. She had already figured the fact that the announcement of her new job and this fight were occurring so close together couldn't possibly be a mere coincidence. Her stomach turned to knots as she watched.

With one swift punch, a flying Vegeta drove his son into the ground only a few feet away from where the group had gathered. With Gohan's help, Goku seized upon the moment. The two of them quickly flew up and managed to subdue Vegeta, bringing him back down to the ground. Bulma ran over to where Trunks had landed and shook him, trying to wake him up. The force of the impact had caused him to involuntarily power down from Super Saiyan form. He opened his eyes slowly to look at his mother, but his expression was far from grateful. He sat up roughly and pushed her helping arms off of him. A tearful Bulma moved back a few steps as Goten stepped in and tried to help him stand. Miyuki hurried over and observed his condition with a shocked look. Trunks pulled away from Goten's grasp to stand on his own and came face-to-face with Miyuki. She reached up to touch his cheek, but he purposely leaned away from her hand. He didn't want to feel her deceitful touch ever again. He turned his head to spit some blood on the ground and looked at Miyuki again with loathing in his eyes. With Goten following, he turned and walked into the house.

Goku and Gohan did not release Vegeta until he had also powered down. Once they let him go, he followed Trunks into the house, not looking back at his mate. Miyuki felt frozen in the wake of Trunks' anger. His last look told her it was over between them and he wanted nothing more to do with her. She felt Bulma's hand on her shoulder and tears began to well up in her eyes. "Go home Miyuki," said Bulma softly. "They will be okay."

Miyuki shook her head and abruptly turned away from Bulma's consoling words. She didn't want her boss to see her crying. As she walked back to her office to retrieve her things and go home, the look on Trunks' face flashed across her thoughts repeatedly. She had never seen such hate in his eyes. In that one awful moment, he looked just like his father, and it truly scared her.

Trunks slowly stumbled up the stairs to his room with Goten right on his heels. When he got there he lumbered into the bathroom and peered into the mirror to survey the damage to his face. He had several cuts that were bleeding, but nothing that he hadn't experienced before. He took his tattered shirt and the rest of his clothes off and got in the shower.

Goten was waiting for Trunks to emerge from his shower when Bulma waltzed into her son's room. "What the hell?" she exclaimed as soon as she saw the huge hole in the drywall on one side and what remained of the shattered window on the other side. "Why do they have to act like such children?" she asked, looking at Goten.

Goten shrugged his shoulders and didn't say a word. The last thing he wanted was to get in the middle of a Briefs' family argument.

Bulma pulled her phone out of her pocket and speed-dialed her favorite contractor. The contractor had done a lot of work for the Briefs since Vegeta had come to live with them. As she explained the damage, she walked out of the room, leaving Goten alone.

Trunks finished his shower, stepped out of the stall and grabbed a towel to dry off. He stared into the steam-fogged mirror at the fresh bruises and cuts, while at the same time tried to push thoughts of Miyuki out of his mind. Still woozy from all of the alcohol he had consumed, he suddenly felt a wave of nausea come over him. He reached his hand out to clutch whatever was within his grasp to steady himself and sat down. Tears started to well up in his eyes again and he struggled to keep them from flowing.

After she'd hung up with the contractor, Bulma marched into the bedroom she shared with the Saiyan Prince and found him in their bathroom surveying the damage his son had inflicted. "What the hell was that all about?" she demanded.

Vegeta turned away from the mirror to face his mate. "I am not sure, exactly, but it has to do with that girl. Perhaps it is you who should furnish _me_ with an explanation," he answered, a calmness in his voice that Bulma rarely heard from him.

Bulma apprised Vegeta of the day's events. Upon hearing the news of Miyuki's promotion and move to the other side of the planet, Vegeta understood the anger his son was feeling. "I guess our son hates both of us now," sighed Bulma to her mate. She picked up a dampened washcloth and began wiping the dried blood from Vegeta's face. She was always amazed at the beating his face could take and never scar.

Vegeta closed his eyes relishing the caring touch his mate was providing him. This was the side of Vegeta that only Bulma saw.

Back in Trunks' bedroom, Goten was on the phone to Sayuri, letting her know what had gone on that afternoon. Trunks pulled himself together, wrapped a towel around his waist, and exited the bathroom. The moment Trunks emerged, Goten quickly wrapped up his conversation with Sayuri, not wanting to put any more salt in his friend's wounds. "Dude, what's up?" he asked, watching as Trunks walked over to his dresser and opened a drawer. "I have never seen you like this."

Trunks took a deep breath as he pulled on a pair of shorts and threw his towel on the floor. "Just smash my head against the wall and kill me. Could you do that for a friend?" replied Trunks with a hint of sarcasm.

Goten shook his head. "No way. I couldn't do that. Talk to me!"

"I don't want to talk about it. Thanks for looking out for me, but I just want to be alone." He moved over to his bed and laid down, shutting his eyes. When Goten was sure that his friend was sleeping, he slipped out of the room and flew home.

* * *

For the next week and a half, Miyuki avoided all contact with the lavender-haired boy who she adored. It was difficult, but she chalked it up to choices. She told herself repeatedly that she had already chosen her path when they had begun their relationship, and if he couldn't accept that, then that was his problem. A week before her moving date she started packing up her belongings. A lot of her stuff she gave to Sayuri and some things were sold to friends from work. She knew at some point she was going to have to contact Trunks to return his television and video game system. Dreading the inevitable, she put it off as long as possible. She continued to busy herself with packing, recovery meetings, finding a replacement to teach aerobics, and work. There were quite a few loose ends she needed to tie up at the lab and this kept her mind occupied to the best of her ability. She felt a deep sorrow that her relationship with Trunks had ended so abruptly and with such hatred on his part.

With only a few days left, she finally mustered up the courage to call him. She had already figured he wouldn't answer her call so she was prepared to leave a very generic message for him. It would go something like, "Hi Trunks, this is Miyuki. I am leaving in a few days and wanted to return your television and game system. If you leave me a message, I will put them on my front porch so that you can come and get them when it's convenient."

Miyuki dialed the number that had become so familiar to her and waited. After a few rings the answering machine took over. The sound of his voice on his message made her heart skip a beat. After a moment of silence, she quickly mumbled her message and with shaking hands, hung up. It reminded her that the last week and a half had been the loneliest she had felt in a long time.

Later that same evening as she was sitting on the floor of her apartment, smoking a cigarette and working on her laptop her doorbell rang. She shook herself out of the trance she was in and walked to the door. Figuring it was Sayuri coming over to try for the hundredth time to talk her out of leaving, she opened the door. To her surprise, it was not her neighbor, but Trunks. He leaned against the doorframe and looked at her with a cold expression. At the sight of him, Miyuki's first instinct was to smile and fall into his arms, but the look on his face advised her against doing that. "Hi," was all she could say.

Trunks took a deep breath. He looked at her and his face softened a little. He wanted to hold her, but the hurt he felt wouldn't let him. "I'm here for the TV and game," he stated flatly.

Miyuki took a few steps backward and opened the door wider so that he could come in. She pointed to where she had moved his things by the door. "They are right here," she said and cleared her throat. It was too hard for her look at him so she walked to the other side of the room and picked up her cigarette.

Trunks looked down at the pile of electronics and clothes, and then over at Miyuki, who had her back to him. He practiced over and over in his head all the cruel things he was going to say when they came face to face, but being this close to her made some of his anger dissipate.

Miyuki had not heard the door close, so she turned around to see what Trunks was doing. Trunks looked at her and their eyes met for a moment before Miyuki pulled hers away. "Is there something else?" she inquired.

Trunks stood silently for a moment before saying to her, "Don't do this."

Miyuki caught his gaze again and replied, "Do what?"

"Don't go."

"Trunks, I told you from the beginning that this was my plan. We talked about this and—"

"No, Miyuki, _we_ did not talk about this!" interrupted Trunks. "We never talked about this because every time I tried to bring it up you stopped me from talking about it! I never got to tell you how I felt about your accepting this job. You just assumed I would go on with my life and forget that we ever happened. I can't do that!" Trunks had moved closer to where Miyuki was standing as he shouted at her.

"I never wanted you to fall in love with me. I never wanted any of this. You kept calling and ... bothering me until I went out with you."

"Oh, I get it now," he sneered. "The only reason you went out with me out of some sort of obligation or pity, is that it? Or was I just another notch on your bedpost?"

Miyuki stormed over to where Trunks was standing and smacked him across the face. "That was so low," she said softly. Her whole body was shaking as she struggled to hold back tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes.

Trunks head was turned away from her from her slap to his face. He slowly turned back to face her, his eyes cold as he stared at her, but his thoughts were jumbled. He was angry, but also regretted the cruel remark he had just made. After a few moments of stony silence passed between them, Trunks abruptly turned away from her, wordlessly gathered up his things and exited her apartment.

Miyuki collapsed on the floor and sobbed as she pounded her fists into the carpet. She deeply regretted what she had said to him, but now it was too late to take any of it back. All the hard work, all she had gone through to become self-sufficient had just walked out her door as if the last two years of recovery had never happened. At that moment, the only thing that mattered was numbing the pain she was feeling, and there was only one way to do that. Once her mind became clear, she sat up and wiped the tears from her face, knowing exactly what she had to do.

* * *

The next morning, Trunks cell phone rang at 8:00. He was sitting at the breakfast table eating in silence, as he had done every morning for the last week and a half. He looked at the displayed number and didn't recognize it, but decided to answer it nonetheless. "Hello."

"Trunks, it's Sayuri. Is Miyuki with you?" she asked anxiously.

"Why would she be with me?" replied Trunks annoyed at her assumption.

"Because she isn't home, and hasn't been here all night. I'm calling you from her apartment and I'm concerned because she didn't take her cell phone with her. It's sitting right here on her table," Sayuri's voice caught a little. "I know you aren't seeing her anymore, but do you have any idea where she might be?"

Trunks felt a wave of panic overtake him. He went over in his mind the events from the prior evening. "We had a fight yesterday. That was the last time I saw her."

"I am worried. It isn't like her to not take her phone and not be here in the morning getting ready for work."

Sayuri was right about that. Trunks knew that Miyuki prided herself on being prompt for her job. It was an important part of her recovery. "I'll be over in a minute to figure out what to do. Call me if she shows up or you hear anything."

"Okay, thanks."

Trunks hung up the phone and placed it back in his pocket. He stood up and noticed that both his parents were looking at him inquisitively. "That was Sayuri. Miyuki isn't at her apartment and hasn't been there all night. I am going out to look for her. Will you let my boss know, mom?"

Bulma nodded and smiled at her son. Those were the first words he had said to her since Miyuki's promotion was announced. "Sure honey. Is there anything I or your father can do?"

Vegeta stood up from the table.

Trunks took a deep breath in and slowly let the air out of his lungs. He couldn't shake off the disquieting feeling he was getting about what he might discover once he did find her. "I shouldn't have said what I said to her yesterday," he said, hanging his head dejectedly.

Vegeta walked over to him and put his hand on his son's shoulder. "Let's go find her."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Trunks decided the most logical place to start the search for Miyuki would be at her apartment. When he and Vegeta arrived, they found the apartment door open and Sayuri standing on the stoop between their two front entrances. When she spotted them approaching, Sayuri waved. Trunks landed next to her on the stoop and Vegeta on the ground below. "Have you heard anything?" asked Trunks.

"Not since I last spoke to you. Earlier this morning, I was heading out of my door to work when I notice that her apartment door was ajar, which is what got me curious," replied Sayuri. "I am already late for work and I can't wait around for her anymore,"

"Give me your cell number and I will call you when I find her." Sayuri nodded then gave him her number, which Trunks quickly programmed into his phone. "Where is the best place for us to start looking?"

"The south side is where we used to live...and the best place to buy what I think she is after." Sayuri looked sadly down at her feet. "She always used to come to me when she felt like she wanted to drink or use. By not talking to me first, I'll have to assume she didn't want me to know what she was planning."

"This is all my fault!" groaned Trunks. "If I hadn't said those awful things to her, she wouldn't be doing this to herself." Trunks pounded his hands in the railing of the stoop, leaving small indents in the metal.

"No, Trunks. It's not your fault." Sayuri took his hand from the railing and turned him to face her. "This has been building inside her for a long time. All these changes are a lot for an addict to handle. You must understand that she made a conscious choice to do what she did. Then again, we can't be certain if that's what she ended up doing."

"Thanks. I'll call you if I find her," he said managing a smile. He flew off towards the south side of town and Vegeta followed behind. When they arrived, Trunks and Vegeta agreed to split up their search efforts, so that they could cover more ground in a shorter amount of time. It didn't take long for Vegeta to pick up Miyuki's scent. From the air, he saw her in a narrow alley sitting on the shadowed ground next to a dumpster. He landed in the entrance to the alley and slowly made his way to where she was sitting. As he came closer, Vegeta contacted Trunks telepathically, letting him know that he had found what they were looking for and Trunks abruptly changed his direction in mid-air to follow his father's energy signal.

Upon hearing footsteps, Miyuki perked her head up. Her bleary eyes tried to focus on the man standing above her. She blinked hard a couple of times at him before realizing he wasn't for whom she'd been waiting. "I'm waiting for someone, so go away before you scare him off," she stated flatly, a slight slurring to her words.

Standing above her, Vegeta raised an eyebrow, crossed his arms and sized-up Miyuki's condition. "My son is looking for you."

"Oh, he is, is he? Why would he be doing something stupid like that?" Miyuki rolled to her side a bit and attempted to stand. Grabbing one of her arms, Vegeta helped her to a standing position. She shook off his helping hand and turned to face him, invading his personal space. "Maybe I don't want to be found! Maybe _you_ need to just go away and forget about me!" With her finger pointed, she jammed it repeatedly into Vegeta's immobile chest.

Miyuki stumbled a bit and Vegeta gripped her arm to steady her. Then he moved his face close to hers and stared into her bleary eyes and said, "Trunks ...loves you." Prior to the fight with his son, he would rarely have used Trunks' given name, as he was more accustomed to referring to his son as "the boy", but now, he thought the better of it.

"Trunks is an idiot if he loves me." Miyuki again pulled her arm away from Vegeta's grasp. "He is better off without me. The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt him, and that is exactly what I did. I don't know why he would be wasting his time looking for me." She stumbled back to the wall and used it to hold her in a standing position. "What do you know about Trunks? And for that matter, what do you know about love?"

Vegeta was momentarily taken aback by her accusations. His mate had no problem talking to him in this tone, and certainly Bra wasn't afraid to speak her mind either, but never had another female spoken to him in such a blunt manner. He frowned darkly at her impudence. "I know enough about both to know when my son loves someone. What exactly are you implying?" countered Vegeta.

Well along on her self-destructive binge, Miyuki was not about to back down from an argument with this man who, under normal, and much more sober circumstances, terrified her. "I am implying that you don't know anything about the way your son feels."

After he'd quietly landed near the alleyway, Trunks had hung a ways back and heard most of the conversation between his father and Miyuki. He knew that Vegeta could sense his presence and stood waiting for the right moment to make his way into the picture. Once Vegeta turned his head toward Trunks, he took that as a sign to come forward. He jogged to where the two were arguing and put a hand on his father's shoulder. "I will take it from here. She doesn't know what she's saying," whispered Trunks. Vegeta nodded briefly to his son and made his exit.

Trunks found himself face-to-face with a disheveled Miyuki. She had her long hair pulled back in a careless braid, and her face was pale. The usual gleam in her eyes was missing and her expression was flat as she turned to face him. As smashed as she was, it took her a few moments to realize that Vegeta was gone and had been replaced by Trunks. When the realization hit, she pushed herself away from the wall and stumbled by him, wanting to retreat into the darker back of the alley. After a few steps, she tripped and landed painfully on her knees. Automatically, Trunks moved toward her and helped her up. "I am taking you home," he stated.

"Leave me alone! Can't you take a hint? I am waiting here for someone and if you're here, he won't come," she asserted and she struggled to break free of his grasp.

"How much have you had to drink?" he demanded.

"None of your fucking business!" she screeched back at him. She was still struggling to remove his hand from her arm, but soon stopped when she realized his strength far outweighed her determination. She let out a defeated sigh and her shoulders drooped. Looking in his eyes, she felt sadness and pain, which were exactly what she was attempting to numb when she went out on her binge. Dropping her head to his chest, she started to cry. "I am so sorry I hurt you, Trunks. I never wanted to hurt you. I didn't mean what I said in my apartment. I enjoyed every single second we spent together. You are so much better off without me. I ruin everything I touch and hurt the people that I love. That's all I have ever done." Her tears become uncontrollable and no more coherent words escaped her lips.

Trunks wrapped his arms around her and they held each other for a long time. When no more tears would flow from her eyes, Miyuki picked her head up and looked at the man she loved. "I am going to take you home now," whispered Trunks. Miyuki nodded her head and he gently picked her up as she placed her arms around his neck. She shut her eyes and held tight to him, until they made it back to her apartment.

When they arrived, Trunks carried Miyuki into the bedroom. All of her furniture was gone and most of her possessions had been packed in boxes and suitcases. Her mattress lay on the floor of the bedroom. Trunks gently laid her down upon the mattress and she positioned herself on her back staring at the ceiling, while he planted himself down next to her.

After flying over the city and circling Capsule Corp several times, Vegeta landed by the back door to his family's residence. He walked in and found Bulma working at the kitchen table with her laptop. She lifted her head to meet his gaze as he entered the room and the two of them stared at each other in awkward silence. "Did you find her?" Bulma finally asked.

Slowly moving toward the table, Vegeta pulled his gaze away from his mate and stared at the empty chair next to her. Bulma pulled the chair out and motioned for her husband to sit down. "Yes, we found her," Vegeta answered as he sank into the offered chair. His expression was that of a man who had been defeated, but who sported no visible marks on his body. Taking a deep breath, Vegeta picked his head up to face his mate. His brows furrowed as he scowled at the thoughts of all that had just transpired.

"Is she okay?" asked Bulma, as she placed a concerned hand on his knee.

Placing his elbow on the kitchen table, Vegeta rested his head in his hand and turned to face away from Bulma. He sat silently for a moment while contemplating how he should answer his mate's question, then sighed. "She was not altogether herself. I believe she had been drinking—heavily."

Bulma brought a startled hand to her mouth. In all the time she had known Miyuki, she had never seen her drink. Bulma had also overheard Miyuki's co-workers remark that whenever she was asked by them to go out after work, she always bowed out. "Oh! So what happened?"

"She was not at all pleased to see me, and even less pleased to see the boy. It was obvious that she did not want to be found." He stopped, as Miyuki's barbed words continued to ring in his ears. Vegeta wanted to relate more of what she said to his mate, but wasn't sure how to verbalize his feelings.

He was attempting to hide his hurt and Bulma could see it all over his face. Her Saiyan prince was a man of few words. Feelings were always difficult for him to verbalize, but there were times when his facial expressions gave them away. "I do hope that she and Trunks can work things out. One grumpy Saiyan male in this house is enough for me," Bulma softly mused, as she took her finger and gently traced the lines in his ear.

Vegeta grasped her hand and interlaced his fingers with hers. "Do I really have no idea what is going on in my son's life? Does he really not know how much I...love him?" he asked flatly, as a lump formed in his throat.

"Is that what she said to you?" Bulma tone was that of shock as she pictured the usually calm Miyuki saying those words to her mate, knowing how much he intimidated her. "I know you love him, but I know you better than she does. She only knows what Trunks has told her. Vegeta, have you ever taken the time to tell him how much you care about him?"

"Those are just words! Why must I use words to express how I feel? That is not the kind of man I am. Feh!" Pushing himself from the table, he stormed out of the kitchen and headed toward the gravity chamber. Bulma thought about following, but decided he would seek her out if he wanted to talk again. She shook her head, closed her laptop and went to the office.

At the apartment, Miyuki continued to silently stare at the ceiling with a glazed over expression. Trunks got up and meandered into the living room to call Sayuri and update her on Miyuki's condition. As he was talking, he heard movement in the bedroom and quickly said good-bye to Sayuri. Miyuki had gotten off the mattress and made her way into the bathroom just in time. She ended up on her knees and crouched over the commode, emptying her stomach contents into it. Trunks paused and steadied himself against the doorframe to the bedroom. He shut his eyes and scrunched up his face listening to the heaving sounds coming from the bathroom. When the dreadful retching stopped, Trunks entered the bathroom. He saw Miyuki lying on the floor curled up in a ball and attempting to free her hair of the braid that she had put it in earlier. He put the lid down on the commode then sat down and stared as she struggled to make her uncooperative fingers work against the stubborn tangles. "Do you want some help," asked Trunks softly.

Miyuki hadn't realized that Trunks had entered the room and she jumped at the sound of his voice. Using one arm, she clumsily pushed herself into a seated position, her half-loosened hair falling over one shoulder. "I need to shower," she replied, "I smell like a dumpster."

With patient hands, Trunks helped her get the rest of her hair out of its braid and then helped her remove her soiled clothes. Once he made sure that the bathtub was filled with water, he gently picked her up and placed her inside. Then, he gathered up her clothes from the bathroom floor and put them in a pile of other dirty clothes in the bedroom. Standing for a moment, he collected his thoughts. Inside, he hurt to be this close to her, but at the same time he felt a great sense of relief that she was here with him and not in that alley waiting for whomever. Seeing the familiar curves of her luscious body ignited a fire within him, but he did not want to get close to her because the agony was too much to bear. Remembering her present condition, he feared she might drown unless he went back in to keep an eye on her. He wandered back in and observed her with her head resting on the side of the bathtub wearing that same glazed-over expression on her face. She stared blankly at him as he sat down on the floor next to the tub and propped her head back up. "This w-water is c-cold!" she complained with a shiver.

"I know. I was hoping it would help you get your head together."

After she shook her head a couple of times, hoping to push the fog out of her brain, Miyuki asked softly, "Why are you being so nice to me?"

In reply, Trunks put a finger over her mouth. He reached over to grab the bar of soap sitting on the side of the tub and handed it to her. She took it from him, but just stared at it, not knowing what to do next. He smirked, then grabbed a washcloth and handed that to her as well. Miyuki looked up from her hands into his eyes. "I'd kiss you, but I have puke breath," she managed to articulate with a small smile.

The thought of kissing her after all of the earlier retching noises he heard her make made his face crinkle up into a disgusted look. "I'll wait until after you brush your teeth," he said and smiled at her. Miyuki smiled back. "I've missed your smile," said Trunks, reaching out to trace her cheek and jaw with a finger.

Miyuki looked down at the soap and washcloth in her hands and dropped them in the bathwater. She leaned back and rested her head on the back edge of the tub, still looking at the lavender-haired man in her bathroom. "I missed you, too," she whispered as she placed her hand atop his. "All of you."

He first looked down at her hand on his, and then back to her face. Trunks decided he ought to leave her and let her finish her bath by herself, since he his presence was too much of a distraction. Also, he did not want things to get out of hand, which they might, given the fact that she was naked. "I better leave you alone for a while. I'll be in the next room if you need me."

Strolling out of the bathroom, Miyuki heard the words, "Down boy," as he made his way into the bedroom. She giggled under her breath, knowing he was probably talking to the bulge forming in his blue jeans. _This is what I am going to miss the most about us_, thought Miyuki remembering the childlike silliness that they shared when they were together. Spending time with him made her forget about being an adult and about her past mistakes. Around Trunks, she had always felt free to be herself, and not have to act like anyone but who she was. Never before had she enjoyed a relationship with a man been based solely on the person she truly was and not on whom she wanted him to think she was.

Trunks, never having experienced a mature, sexual relationship with a woman before, had no expectations coming into it. At one point, he was sure that Miyuki was the one with whom he would spend the rest of his life. Now that the summer was almost over, with the weather starting to chill, and the days getting shorter, he wasn't so sure anymore. Soon his life would change also, and for the first time, he was starting to come to grips with that fact. Still, thinking about all those changes gave him a pain in his chest whenever he thought about her leaving and his going off to college.

Miyuki had finally concentrated enough to do what she was supposed to do in the chilly bathtub. After she let the bathwater out, she turned on the shower to get all the soap out of her hair and to warm up a little. Carefully stepping out of the shower, she grabbed a towel to dry off. After that was done, she brushed her teeth, and combed out her damp hair before entering the bedroom. While he was waiting for her to get done, Trunks had been pacing across the room, and he stopped to face her as their eyes met. "I'll let you get dressed," he said breathlessly and quickly exited the bedroom.

She dropped the towel that was wrapped around her and searched for some clothes among all her boxed-up belongings. Finding a t-shirt and some sweat pants, she slipped them on. Then, she gingerly picked up the smelly clothes she had been wearing and carried them to her washing machine. Her stomach was still very queasy and the smell emanating from her clothing wasn't helping matters. Emerging from the bedroom, she found that Trunks had resumed his pacing in the living room. "There's no place to sit," he remarked nervously.

"I'm going to make some tea. Do you want some?" she asked, not wanting to acknowledge his remark. All her furniture that she had gathered from hand-me-downs, trash picking, and second-hand stores was gone. Her new home would be decked out with contemporary "state-of-the-art" furnishings and paraphernalia.

"Here, let me do it," he said and took the teapot out of her hand. He filled it with water and placed it on the stove. As she watched him move around her bare kitchen, she leaned against the counter and folded her arms. "How are you doing?" asked Trunks.

"Better, thanks," she replied, starting to feel more like herself again.

Trunks walked to where she was and leaned against the counter next to her, being careful not to make contact with her. The two of them stood this way for a moment, until she scooted closer to him so they were touching. A warm quiver coursed through his body as her scent filled his head. She picked up his arm and placed it around her, then settled her head in the nook of his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his torso. "Thank you," she uttered.

"For what?" questioned Trunks.

Miyuki picked her head up and stared into his eyes. "For keeping me from doing something really stupid, and for being so kind to me, after the way I treated you."

"Oh, _that_," he said as his mouth curled up in a smirk.

Smacking him on the stomach, she made a disgusted grunt. "I am being serious here!" she said, but she was smiling her most dazzling smile.

Trunks took her head in his hands and lifted her face towards his. "Seriously, I don't ever want anything bad to happen to you, and I certainly don't want you to ruin the sobriety you have worked so hard to achieve. I feel sort of responsible...and guilty about the whole thing. I said some stuff I didn't mean either, and I am sorry, too."

Reaching up to his face, Miyuki brushed aside that stray lock of lavender hair from his eyes. She traced her fingers around the outside of his ear and whispered to him, "I brushed my teeth."

That remark was all it took to push Trunks over the edge. He let loose the passionate tension that had been building inside since seeing her naked. He crushed her lips with his own and she eagerly returned his kiss. Trunks picked her up and sat her on top of the kitchen counter; his arms encircled her midsection as she draped her legs around his waist. They continued ardently kissing until the teapot started whistling. He pulled his lips from hers and slowly stepped back from her. Hopping off the counter, Miyuki cleared her throat and announced, "Water's boiling!"


	14. This is GoodBye

Chapter 14

After Miyuki made them each a cup of tea, they walked back to the bedroom and sat down on the mattress. The two of them made small talk for a while, but soon Miyuki could feel exhaustion taking over her body. She had been up all night and she was struggling to stay awake and listen to what Trunks was saying, not wanting to waste a single second of their precious last few days together. Unable to keep her eyes open anymore, she drifted off to sleep, her head resting on his shoulder.

Looking down at her and seeing her sacked out, Trunks gently pried the emptied cup from her hand and set it on the floor. He gently laid her down and settled in next to her watching her sleep, until he drifted off himself.

A couple hours passed and Trunks was abruptly disturbed from slumber by the sound of his cell phone. Carefully he tiptoed out of the bedroom to answer its summons.

"Hi, honey. It's Mom. Is everything okay?" asked Bulma, concern in her tone.

"Yeah. Miyuki is sleeping. I was asleep too, 'til you called," yawned Trunks.

"Sorry! I just wanted to know if you needed anything."

Trunks breathed a heavy sigh. "I don't need anything."

"Well, call me if you do," replied Bulma, unsure of what to do next. She wanted to know what had transpired between Miyuki and Vegeta, but was not sure this was a good time to ask.

"Mom, was father angry when he got home?" asked Trunks.

"He was...disturbed." Bulma took in a breath and bit her lip. "Trunks, you know your father loves you don't you?"

Trunks opened his eyes wide. He had never actually heard those words from his father, but had assumed Vegeta loved him in a way that only Vegeta could. "I guess so. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, it's not important. Call me if you need anything. I won't expect you for dinner."

"Thanks, Mom. Oh, and Mom?"

"Yes, honey?"

"I love you." Trunks never made it a practice to tell his mom that he loved her since he became a teenager, but at that moment he really wanted her to know it.

"I love you, too," replied Bulma with tears forming in her eyes.

They hung up their phones and Trunks made his way back into the bedroom. Miyuki was sitting up in bed attempting to wake up from slumber. She saw him return to the bedroom and smiled. "Hi. How long have I been sleeping?"

"A couple hours. Was I boring you that much?" suggested Trunks with a smirk on his face.

"Well, if you must know..." Miyuki did not finish her sentence and just grinned back at him.

Walking over to the mattress, Trunks plopped down next to her and pulled her close to him. She rested her head against his chest and gently stroked the fabric of his shirt. "What happens now? Do we start fighting again?"

Trunks rested his chin on top of her head and smoothed out the hair on her back. "We've wasted too much time being angry at each other," uttered Trunks. "Do you feel like eating? I am famished."

"That would be okay, I guess," she said half-heartedly, as eating was not at the top of her list of things to do at that moment. "I really ought to go to a meeting."

"Oh," replied Trunks. "Why don't you do that, and I will get us something to eat while you are gone?"

"Sounds good to me," yawned Miyuki. She stretched out some of the kinks in her back from sleeping on only a mattress, and they both stood up. Miyuki phoned Sayuri and made arrangements to meet her at a nearby meeting.

While Miyuki was gone, Trunks picked them up dinner along with some flowers and candles for a little mood enhancement. As he got everything together for her return, he decided that he wanted to enjoy their last few days together. It was too exhausting and frustrating for him to stay angry at her and it would make their eventual parting that much more painful for both of them.

Upon her return, Miyuki was pleasantly surprised at what she found. He had found an unpacked blanket and had opened it up in the middle of the living room floor. On it he arranged the take-out food, placed the lit candles in the middle, and scattered the flowers all around. Giggling delightedly, she slinked over to Trunks and playfully kissed him. They pulled away from each other and he led her to the dinner spread. "This is like a picnic," commented Miyuki as they sat on the floor. He dished out her food on a paper plate and handed it to her. She took the plate and seductively smiled at him as she began to eat. He made himself a plate, then lay down on his side, and dug in.

After taking a few bites, Miyuki turned to Trunks. "I have to ask you something," she stated in a serious tone.

He stopped stuffing his face and looked back at her. "You talk too much," he said with a smirk.

She made an annoyed face and flicked a vegetable at him, which he easily caught in his mouth. "I really do have something I have to ask you. What did I say to your father?"

Trunks swallowed the food in his mouth and his face tuned somber. "I couldn't hear you very well."

"Oh come on!" mocked Miyuki. "Don't you Saiyans have super-powered hearing or something?"

"Um...no. Heightened hearing is not one of my 'super powers.'"

"Well, I know you must've heard _some_ of it. I can only remember bits and pieces. Was I really _that_ mean to him?"

Trunks looked down at his food. He didn't want to tell her that he had heard most every word, preferring to act naïve. "Really, I didn't hear that much."

"Okay, fine!" Her eyes became slits as she glared at him. "What I really want to know is if I need to apologize to him for what I said? I don't want him to hate me."

Trunks looked up at her. "I guess an apology would be a good thing," he said softly.

"HA! So you did hear the conversation!"

"Not _all_ of it...well, most of it..."

"I knew it!" She declared, before putting her plate down and tackled him. "'Fess up! What did I say?" Miyuki quickly pinned his arms down and straddled him.

Trunks laughed, knowing he could easily overpower her, but really didn't want to. "Please don't hurt me. Please," he pleaded while still chuckling.

"I seem to remember that you are ticklish," she said, leaning over him as her mouth formed a devious smile.

"No! Not that! Anything but _that_!" They rolled around on the floor as Miyuki continued to try to tickle him and Trunks only half-attempted to get away from her. He rolled on top of her and pinned her arms to the floor with his hands. "Now, what are you going to do?"

Smiling seductively at him, she picked her head up and traced his lips with her tongue. Trunks let go of her arms and crushed his lips against hers. She pulled his head away and looked into his eyes. "You are such a sucker for that move."

The corner of Trunks lips curled into a Vegeta-like smirk. He leaned down to her ear and whispered into her ear. "Push me away."

His breath against her ear sent impulses through her body, such that there was no possible way she could push him away. He gently kissed the nape of her neck and then using his tongue he softly brushed against the skin under her chin. Miyuki took a deep breath, taking in the scent of the man so close to her. She lifted her knees and softly stroked his legs with her feet before wrapping her legs around him. Trunks moved his kisses down to the skin that was exposed at the top of her shirt and then slid his hand beneath the bottom of her shirt. As he stroked the skin of her stomach, she moaned at the intense pleasure his touch gave her.

Suddenly, Trunks stood up. Miyuki opened her eyes and looked at him with a shocked expression. "What's wrong?" she asked, hoping he wasn't upset by what had just happened. She could hardly catch her breath as she spoke the words.

Trunks smiled at her deviously. He took of his shirt and threw it at her. Then Miyuki felt a gust of wind around her. She blinked and looked about the room, to discover that he had disappeared. "What the hell!" she shouted, completely confused by what had just happened. Surely he wasn't angry.

Miyuki got her answer when she heard laughter coming from the bedroom. "I'm in here," he called out.

Making a disgusted noise, Miyuki pushed herself into a standing position and walked into the bedroom. Trunks was waiting for her kneeling on the mattress wearing nothing but his "briefs." With his index finger, he motioned for her to come over to him.

Smiling, she slowly walked towards him, removing her shirt and unzipped her shorts on the way. As they fell to the floor, she unhooked her bra, letting it fall to the floor as well. She stepped onto the mattress and stood above him. He looked up at her face and then down to her stomach. He gently glided his tongue around her navel while easing her panties off her hips and tossing them aside. Softly moaning, Miyuki entwined her fingers in his lavender hair and tilted her head back. Nothing mattered at that moment in time but the two of them, together. They spent the next several hours re-discovering each other, riding one wave of pleasure after another.

After the two of them had been completely satisfied, Miyuki and Trunks lay next to each other. Miyuki felt an overwhelming rush of emotions envelop her and tears started streaming down her face. She sat up and turned her back to him, not wanting him so see what was happening to her. She quickly tried to wipe her eyes so that he wouldn't notice, but he already had. He sat up next to her and turned her head around to face him. "What's wrong, Miyuki?" asked a worried Trunks as he touched her wet cheek with a fingertip. "Did I hurt you or something?"

"No...not at all. That was so wonderful. I am just so happy," she blurted. "I am just overly emotional right now with all that has happened to me in the last 24 hours. I'm sorry to be such a flake."

Trunks pulled her to him and held her while she tried to calm herself down. Trunks didn't know what to say to her, so he just held her.

_Look at me, my depth perception must be off again _

_You got much closer than I thought you did_

_I'm in your reach_

_You held me in your head_

_Would you find it in your heart_

_To make this go away_

_And let me rest in pieces_

_**Rest in Pieces - Saliva**_

* * *

The days passed quickly as the time for Miyuki to go the airport approached. Bulma had arranged for her to be picked up by the company limousine and that everyone in the family would go to the airport with her. When the limo arrived, Miyuki said good-bye to her best friend, Sayuri, and to her apartment. As she hugged her best friend for the last time, she began to feel apprehensive about leaving the comfort of what she had known for so many years. "I'll come back and visit all the time. Whenever you want to see me, I will just fly you over, okay?"

Sayuri smiled and continued to hug her friend, knowing in her heart that their relationship would never be the same. "You take care of yourself and call me if you need me."

Miyuki slowly pulled away from their embrace. Tears were streaming down both of their faces as they said their last farewells.

On the ride to the airport, everyone was silent while Trunks held Miyuki the entire way there.

When they arrived, Miyuki felt like she was on autopilot as she handed over her luggage to the sky-cap. She took a deep breath before turning to face the Briefs family one last time. "Well, I guess this is it." Before he could react, she walked straight up to Vegeta and gave him a hug. A wide-eyed and quite bewildered Vegeta, looked at his mate for direction on how to handle this unexpected display of affection. Bulma moved her arms in a circle, mimicking a hug to an invisible person. Vegeta, following her lead placed his hands on Miyuki's back, not sure what else to do. As she pulled away she whispered, "Thank you for everything," and then lightly kissed the Saiyan prince on the cheek. Vegeta rubbed the spot on his cheek where she had kissed him and smirked.

Miyuki then turned toward Bulma and gave her a hug. Tears were forming in both women's eyes as they clung to each other one last time. "Thank you so much for giving me this chance. I won't disappoint you, I promise."

They released their hug at the same time and Bulma looked into her eyes. "I know you won't. Now go before I change my mind."

Miyuki bent down and hugged Bra, but the little girl began to make a scene in the middle of the gate, crying and begging her not to go.

At last it was time for Miyuki to say good-bye to Trunks. "Let's leave them alone," said Bulma as she ushered Vegeta and a sobbing Bra away from the pair.

A lone tear fell down Miyuki's cheek as she gazed into the eyes of the man she loved. In her heart, she hoped that some day they would meet again and that as he became a man, he wouldn't forget what they had shared. "I love you," she said.

A tear fell down Trunks' face after she said those words. "I love you, too," he replied softly. "I know you think that I am going to change when I go to college, but nothing will ever change the way I feel about you. I am a better man because of you."

Miyuki managed to smile as she struggled to gaze upon his face one more time through the shimmer of tears that were now freely flowing down her face. "This isn't good-bye forever. Someday we will be working together again. Won't we?"

A sad grin struggled to form on Trunks' face as he pulled her close to him. "Yeah, I'm sure that we will see each other again."

Miyuki held him for a short time until they were interrupted by one of the flight attendants. "Miss He, we are ready to depart whenever you are," he said and walked away from the embracing pair towards the plane.

"This is it," she said.

"Yeah, this is it," replied Trunks. He wiped a few tears from her face and kissed her deeply one last time before they both reluctantly broke apart from each other. She turned and walked down the jet-way corridor, not once looking back. He stared at her receding figure until she was completely out of sight and the gate agent pulled the door shut.

He stood this way for several moments, frozen on the spot. Bulma came up behind him and put a caring hand on his unmoving shoulder. Then she gently hooked her arm in his to lead him back to the car. Vegeta was waiting by the limo with Bra hugging his leg, still sobbing. Leaning against the vehicle with his arms crossed, he watched as his mate and son approached. The pain he saw on Trunks' face made a knot form in his own stomach. "You really loved that girl didn't you?" asked Vegeta of his first-born.

His father's words were too much to bear. Trunks shoulders shook uncontrollably as he broke down and started crying. Vegeta pulled his son to him and the two of them stood there while Trunks released all his pain, sorrow, and anger. Bulma reached up and rubbed her son's broad back as he sobbed in his father's arms. This was one of those times when he needed his father and Vegeta was happy that he could finally be there for him.

All during the silent ride home, Bra sat on her big brother's lap with her little arms wrapped around his neck. She hated to see Trunks cry and believed, in her childish way, that she could make his sadness go away if she just held him tightly enough. Sitting across from them, Bulma kept looking at her two children. Unlike Bra, she knew that Trunks would again seek the natural release that only crying could bring, for holding in the pain would only make him sick.

A dry-eyed Trunks, numbly stared out the side window at the scenery whizzing by. He couldn't say for certain what the future held in store for him. But without Miyuki, he could only foresee the coming years as ones filled with loneliness; that was the only thing of which he was sure.

Author's note: So, this is the end of the story, or is it????? What would happen if the pair met up again in 7 years after Trunks takes over as president of Capsule Corp.? Would you like to know? If so, review and let me know.


End file.
